California startup Astrolab unveils space rover, more than a mere ‘moon buggy’
A startup based in the Los Angeles area, founded by a veteran spaceflight robotics engineer, has unveiled a full-scale, working prototype of a next-generation lunar rover. The four-wheeled, car-sized Flexible Logistics and Exploration (FLEX) vehicle is as fast as NASA's old "moon buggy" but is designed to do much more. It was tested in the rugged California desert near Death Valley National Park during a five-day field test in December. The FLEX rover is intended for use in NASA's Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the moon as early as 2025 and establish a long-term lunar colony as a precursor to sending astronauts to Mars.0
