Have you ever wanted a rocket pack to soar amongst the sky? Now you can … on Mars… Gravity is less, atmospheric density is less, and the vistas are breathtaking. So come to Mars...
Buck Rogers aside, Mars is an interesting environment for out-of-this-world mobility options for an explorer. This challenge asks for the definition of a conceptual mobility solution to allow an astronaut to easily and rapidly explore Mars including overcoming obstacles such as cliffs, ravines and other difficult terrain. The solution should be person-portable and any means or source of propulsion be locally produced.
This challenge can be answered by:
A one handed control for Jetpacks to make it easier for astronauts to explore and record information. Uses more intuitive turning and has cruise control like feature. In addition we developed an app for use with the free hand to be able to make voice notes of terrain.
Presented in a 3D visualisation of the Jetpack on Mars being controlled by an Xbox controller.