Scientists Developing Big Ball to Explore Mars
Aug. 21 -- Here's a challenge: How to traverse remote, unknown territory with huge boulders, steep slopes and deep gullies?
The solution: Roll with it.
NASA engineers are designing a tough, oversized beach ball that could someday roll over broad, rocky expanses of Mars. After bouncing to a landing, the ball would skid and roll around the Red Planet, propelled by Martian winds. The ball could accelerate to about 22 mph in 45 mile-an-hour gusts.
As envisioned, the craft, dubbed Tumbleweed, measures about two stories high or 20 feet in diameter and weighs a mere 44 pounds. Like the big wheels on jacked-up trucks, the ball is designed to keep on rolling.
"If you want to do science over thousands of kilometers, a giant ball makes sense," said Jack Jones, test manager for the Tumbleweed project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "A huge ball can go over anything."
Deflate to Stop, Inflate to Roll
Tension cords at the core of the giant rolling ball would carry water-seeking radar, cameras and other instruments. After drifting to a desired location, engineers back on Earth could "park" the giant ball for a while by partially deflating it.
The sagging ball would be less likely to budge in the wind. Tools and instruments would then exit the ball through a tube in the ball's design. Once tests are finished, the tools would retract and the ball would suck in thin Martian air to become rotund again.
To prevent punctures, the ball's outer layer would be made of a super-tough fabric, possibly Vectran, a material used in some bulletproof vests. The ball would also host multiple layers of inflatable bladders underneath its outer layer so if an outer rip occurred, an inner bladder could inflate to patch the hole.
Although scientists may not have precise control over the giant ball's direction, Jones is hopeful it could cover record territory. The first NASA Mars rover to land on Mars in 1997 relayed back a wealth of information and images, but the six-wheeled, 23-pound Sojourner covered only 100 yards over its entire lifetime of one month.
