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http://www.floridatoday.com/news/space/stories/2001b/jul/spa071601b.htm
New wheels developed for Mars NASA has spent the past few decades reinventing the wheel with hobby supplies, athletic equipment and a little ingenuity. Five thousand years after early man first turned a potters wheel on its side, one of the oldest technologies has been stripped down and rebuilt for the harsh environment of Mars. It's a planet where dust storms are common, rocks litter the terrain and the temperature can dip down to minus 116 degrees Fahrenheit. At NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, engineers are testing wheel designs for its 2003 mission to send twin rovers to the Martian surface. They'll hunt for water and life. Full story here: http://www.floridatoday.com/news/space/stories/2001b/jul/spa071601b.htm |