NASA Astronauts Will Get to Ride Inside These Seriously Funky Vans Before Launching to the Moon

The 9-mile journey from NASA’s astronaut crew quarters to the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida won’t ever be the identical, thanks to the introduction of those undeniably uncommon transport autos.

NASA is within the midst of making ready all kinds of cool stuff for the upcoming Artemis missions to the Moon, from a gigantic rocket by to new lunar rovers and lunar spacesuits. Not to depart any stones unturned, the house company is seeking to substitute the autos with which it delivers astronauts from the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center.

And like so many different initiatives within the works, NASA has tapped a personal associate to develop an answer. In this case, NASA has chosen Canoo Technologies, an EV startup primarily based in Arkansas. The firm will now design and construct three customized vans, or Crew Transportation Vehicles (CRTs), because the house company refers to them, as a result of, whenever you’re NASA, every little thing deserves a elaborate identify. Anyhoo, Canoo must have the fleet prepared for checks in June 2023. The first crewed Artemis flights aren’t scheduled till 2024.

“We are honored to transport the Artemis crew to the launch site for the first human lunar landing in more than 50 years,” Tony Aquila, CEO of Canoo, mentioned in a press release. The firm plans to launch its first electrical minivans on the market later this yr, having chosen Pryor, Oklahoma, as the positioning of its manufacturing unit. The pod-shaped Artemis vans can be primarily based on the corporate’s all-electric industrial fashions.

Together, the three vans constructed for NASA will carry 4 totally suited astronauts, flight assist employees, and related gear to the launch pad. Canoo additionally wants to make sure that the autos can assist pre-launch actions, corresponding to coaching and launch countdown checks. Canoo says its EVs are environmentally pleasant and simply recyclable at finish of life. They’re additionally modular and upgradeable.

The introduction of Canoo’s CRTs means it’s the top of the street for NASA’s growing older Astrovan fleet, which dates again to 1983. No phrase but if Artemis astronauts will obtain complimentary Corvettes, as was the case with their Apollo counterparts.