It featured no steering wheel. Instead, the astronauts drove the Rover using a T-shaped hand controller situated between the two seats controlled the four drive motors, two steering motors and brakes. Moving the stick forward powered the LRV forward, left and right turned the vehicle left or right, and pulling backwards activated the brakes. There was no handbrake.
Each wheel had its own electric drive made by Delco, a 5.4amp DC series wound motor capable of 190W at 10,000 rpm, attached to the wheel via an 80:1 harmonic drive, and a mechanical brake unit. Manoeuvring capability was provided through the use of front and rear steering motors.
As we mentioned before, tires could not be inflated. So the wheels consisted of a spun aluminum hub and a 32 inches (81 cm) diameter, 9 inches (23 cm) wide tire made of zinc coated woven steel strands attached to the rim and discs of formed aluminum. Titanium chevrons covered 50 percent of the contact area to provide traction. The first generation of run-flat tires in other words.
Each wheel cost, hold yourself, $85,000. These days, you can get a pretty decent sports car for that price. Oh, by the way the LRV had a top speed of about 8 mph (13 km/h).
Autonomy was also quite limited. Total distance covered by the LRV was 17.25 miles (27.76 km) during Apollo 15, 16.50 miles (26.55 km) during Apollo 16 and a massive 22.30 miles (35.89 km) during Apollo 17.
At the conclusion of the Apollo 16, mission Commander John W. Young took the opportunity to put the lunar rover through a full test. This was the second mission with the Rover onboard and this “Lunar Grand Prix” would allow John to evaluate the performance of the rover in the light gravity and the dusty, cratered, and rocky surface of the Moon.
Don’t try to purchase a used LRV. They’re all up on the Moon. And of the six “owners”, none of them ever complained about the LRV. All three ran flawlessly and never broke down, which is good because in that case NASA would have needed to create the first Lunar Tow Truck!
photo:NASA
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Each wheel had its own electric drive made by Delco, a 5.4amp DC series wound motor capable of 190W at 10,000 rpm, attached to the wheel via an 80:1 harmonic drive, and a mechanical brake unit. Manoeuvring capability was provided through the use of front and rear steering motors.
As we mentioned before, tires could not be inflated. So the wheels consisted of a spun aluminum hub and a 32 inches (81 cm) diameter, 9 inches (23 cm) wide tire made of zinc coated woven steel strands attached to the rim and discs of formed aluminum. Titanium chevrons covered 50 percent of the contact area to provide traction. The first generation of run-flat tires in other words.
Each wheel cost, hold yourself, $85,000. These days, you can get a pretty decent sports car for that price. Oh, by the way the LRV had a top speed of about 8 mph (13 km/h).
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Autonomy was also quite limited. Total distance covered by the LRV was 17.25 miles (27.76 km) during Apollo 15, 16.50 miles (26.55 km) during Apollo 16 and a massive 22.30 miles (35.89 km) during Apollo 17.
At the conclusion of the Apollo 16, mission Commander John W. Young took the opportunity to put the lunar rover through a full test. This was the second mission with the Rover onboard and this “Lunar Grand Prix” would allow John to evaluate the performance of the rover in the light gravity and the dusty, cratered, and rocky surface of the Moon.
Don’t try to purchase a used LRV. They’re all up on the Moon. And of the six “owners”, none of them ever complained about the LRV. All three ran flawlessly and never broke down, which is good because in that case NASA would have needed to create the first Lunar Tow Truck!
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photo:NASA