Astronauts Ride in Style in New Moon Truck

From SPACE.com:

NASA's new prototype for a future moon truck is proving to be the ultimate lunar RV, allowing astronauts to take extended road trips without the constant drag of bulky spacesuits. A terrestrial version of the Small Pressurized Rover, which can go forward, reverse and side-to-side to tackle tough terrain, is completing a three-day drive across the Arizona desert today after a successful week of testing, NASA officials said. "It's just an incredibly capable machine," said Doug Craig, NASA's strategic analysis manager for the exploration systems at the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C. "It's going great and everyone's really pleased with it." Astronauts and geologists split into two, two-person teams to test the unpressurized and pressurized rover versions on the barren Black Point lava fields of Arizona. The rover is part of NASA's bid to return astronauts to the moon by 2020 under the Constellation program. While some engineers are developing program's Orion spacecraft, Ares I and V rockets, and Altair landers, others are testing how best to move astronauts on the moon once they get there. Humans first drove vehicles on the moon in 1971, when Apollo 15 astronauts Dave Scott and Jim Irwin unfolded their electric Lunar Roving Vehicle from its berth on their Falcon lander. Two other moon cars followed on NASA's last two Apollo flights, but those rovers were built for limited trips.

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