MDA has been awarded a contract by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) to undertake a Phase A initial design study for a Canadian Lunar Rover mission to the Moon. As part of the CSA's Lunar Exploration Accelerator Program (LEAP), the Lunar Rover will advance eight key technologies that are foundational building blocks for planetary rovers, including mobility, communications, operations, thermal control for lunar night survival, power generation and storage, and semi-autonomous plus autonomous operations.

The rover will conduct its mission at the South Pole of the Moon, providing the opportunity to explore resources in the permanently shadowed regions, including lunar volatiles and water ice, as well as thermal and radiation safety analysis for future human lunar landings.

MDA has assembled a world-leading team of Canadian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and scientific and academic experts to deliver the LEAP Lunar Rover, paving the way for Canada to establish technologies and capabilities that feed into future commercial lunar supply chains.

"We are proud to lead this highly capable and experienced technical and academic team. with this depth of talent, we believe that our team will surpass the goals of the CSA's mission while developing state-of-the-art technologies and scientific approaches that will position MDA and the Canadian space industry for the rapidly-growing global space economy, paving the way for future commercial applications on the lunar surface and beyond," said Mike Greenley, Chief Executive Officer, MDA

"The science gathered from this mission will position canada at the forefront of lunar resource planning and prospecting, and will ensure that Canadian science team members will be contributing to an international effort with unique and important measurements, datasets and interpretations. This opportunity will also allow us to train the next generation of Canadian planetary scientists and engineers and grow capability within our scientific community." said Professor Michael Daly, Director of the Centre for Research in Earth and Space Science, and York Research Chair in Planetary Science, York University

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The Moon's top layer alone has enough oxygen to sustain 8 billion people for 100,000 years
Lismore, Australia (The Conversation) Nov 11, 2021
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