PLEASANTON, Calif. — AEye in Pleasanton, Calif., will provide its Apollo long-range lidar for Lunar Outpost's Pegasus Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV), which will transport astronauts across the lunar surface.
Lunar Outpost selected the solid-state lidar to support terrain perception, obstacle detection and autonomous navigation aboard Pegasus. The company is developing the vehicle for operations at the lunar South Pole as part of NASA's Artemis program.
AEye said the contract is worth several million dollars and expands its lidar business into space applications. The company also provides lidar technology for automotive, defense and industrial markets.
Operating a lidar sensor on the Moon presents a different set of environmental and engineering requirements than using one on Earth. Apollo will need to operate in a vacuum and withstand temperature extremes and vibration.
The sensor uses a solid-state design and a software-defined architecture. This lets engineers adjust scanning patterns and performance through software to meet different operating requirements.
Lunar Outpost plans to use those capabilities to give Pegasus information about the terrain surrounding the vehicle. The lidar will support systems that identify obstacles and help the vehicle navigate the lunar surface during crewed and autonomous operations.
“As Lunar Outpost works to establish a sustained human presence at the Moon’s South Pole, we need partners who can scale with us,” said Forrest Meyen, chief strategy officer at Lunar Outpost. “Apollo™ gives Pegasus enhanced perception to traverse safely, perform advanced autonomous operations, and begin building NASA’s Moon Base.”
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Adapting lidar for lunar operations
Lidar measures its surroundings by transmitting laser light and analyzing the returned signal. For a lunar vehicle, those measurements can provide information about terrain and obstacles without depending on visible ambient light.
AEye said Apollo's software-defined architecture allowed the company to tune the sensor for the Pegasus mission rather than rely on a fixed scanning configuration.
“This multi-million-dollar contract award is a testament to our technology and its ability to address this significant market opportunity,” said Matt Fisch, chairman and CEO of AEye. “Space mobility is a new market opportunity for AEye, and the lunar environment represents the most demanding proving ground any sensor can face: no atmosphere, no margin for error, and no opportunity for in-mission repair.”
AEye also describes Apollo as a compact sensor, an important consideration for equipment aboard lunar vehicles.
