The moon shouldn’t be the kind of place you want to get lost in. Trying to follow the dusty footprints to get back to base can be quite a challenge, especially if you don’t have a GPS system on the surface. Fortunately, aerospace engineers thought of this and designed a backpack to create a real-time 3D map of the Moon, preventing astronauts from getting lost on the Moon. Named the
Kinematics Navigation and Cartography Backpack (KNaCK), it was developed with NASA and private sector partners to help future explorers find their way around the lesser-known south polar regions of the Moon.
KNaCK uses a real-time navigation system and works using a pulsed laser that measures distances to nearby objects and surface features. According to NASA, the system can provide backpacking astronauts on the Moon with a 3D, high-resolution map of their surroundings.
The technology used is called frequency modulated continuous wave lidar and is capable of providing velocity and range for millions of measurement points per second, including the velocity and distance of decaying dust particles. “Basically, a sensor is a surveying tool that can create centimeter-level precision ultra-high-resolution 3D maps for both navigation and science mapping, giving them a rich scientific context,” said Michael Zanetti, who leads the KNaCK project at NASA. “It will help keep astronauts and rovers safe in an environment where GPS is not available, such as the Moon, by determining actual distances to distant landmarks, and showing explorers in real time how far they’ve traveled and how far they have left,” the statement says.
KNaCK was tested in an ancient volcanic crater in Potrillo, New Mexico in November 2021 and in late April at NASA’s Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute in Kilbourne Hole, New Mexico ( SSERVI) will be used for another test
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