How the ATHLETE Robot Could Build Our Lunar Future
The six-legged rover that could transform alien soil into a home.
Imagine a future where massive, six-legged robots traverse the lunar landscape, processing the raw soil into life-sustaining oxygen and building entire habitats from the very ground beneath their feet. This is the vision behind NASA's ATHLETE rover, a revolutionary mobile platform designed to use lunar resources to prepare a sustainable home for humanity on the Moon. By turning the Moon's regolith into a resource, this technology is poised to change everything we know about deep space exploration.
The fine, gray dust that blankets the Moon, known as lunar regolith, is the result of billions of years of impacts by meteors and comets1 . This isn't just simple dirt; it's a treasure trove of elements vital for human survival and industry. According to John Grant, a lecturer in soil science at Southern Cross University, the Moon's regolith is approximately 45% oxygen by content1 .
However, this oxygen is chemically bound into oxidized minerals, including silica, aluminum, iron, and magnesium1 . For future astronauts to use it, the oxygen must be extracted, a process that requires a significant amount of energy to break these tough chemical bonds. The potential, though, is staggering. Grant estimates that the top ten meters of the Moon's surface contain enough oxygen to support all eight billion people on Earth for roughly 100,000 years1 .
This concept of using local materials is formalized as In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). As NASA explains, ISRU involves "collection, processing, storing and use of materials found or manufactured on other astronomical objects... that replace materials that would otherwise be brought from Earth"4 . It's the ultimate form of living off the land, turning space exploration from a series of short, expensive camping trips into a sustainable, long-term presence.
The economics of spaceflight make ISRU not just an attractive option, but a necessary one. Launching materials from Earth is extraordinarily costly; for example, it cost $243 million just to send NASA's one-ton Perseverance rover to Mars6 . For human settlements requiring tons of water, oxygen, building materials, and rocket fuel, this approach is utterly impractical.
"Sending metals to Mars from Earth might be feasible, but it's not economical. Can you imagine bringing tons of metals to Mars? It's just not practical"
At the heart of this endeavor is the ATHLETE (All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer), a robotic lunar rover under development by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)3 . ATHLETE is more than a simple rover; it's a multi-purpose, mobile platform designed to be a factory, construction crane, and heavy-lift transport all in one.
ATHLETE's unique six-legged design provides unparalleled versatility. Each limb is equipped with 6 degrees of freedom for generalized robotic manipulation and is capped with a motorized wheel3 . This hybrid system allows ATHLETE to roll over smooth terrain for efficiency, and walk with its limbs to navigate rough, rocky landscapes, climb steep slopes, or even scale vertical surfaces with a proposed grappling hook system3 .
Perhaps its most powerful feature is the ability for multiple ATHLETE vehicles to dock together to support even larger loads, and to use swap-out tools and implements for any number of tasks3 . This transforms ATHLETE from a single robot into a modular, scalable workforce for the lunar surface.
Rolls on wheels for efficiency, walks with legs for challenging terrain, and can even climb vertical surfaces.
Multiple ATHLETE units can dock together to handle larger payloads and more complex tasks.
Interchangeable tools allow ATHLETE to perform various functions from excavation to construction.
While the Moon is often described as an "airless body," its regolith contains immense volumes of oxygen that can be liberated through a process similar to what's used in metal production on Earth: electrolysis1 . In this process, regolith would be heated until it melts, then subjected to an electrical current to separate the minerals from the oxygen1 .
On the Moon, the priorities would be reversed from terrestrial applications: oxygen would be the main product, while the separated metals would become useful byproducts for construction1 . The challenge is substantial—the process is energy-intensive and requires substantial industrial equipment. NASA is investigating using solar arrays positioned around permanently-lit crater rims to provide constant power1 .
| Temperature | Resulting Material | Applications |
|---|---|---|
| ~1,000°C | Pure Iron Metal | Basic structural components |
| ~1,400°C | Liquid Iron-Silicon Alloys | Complex casting and manufacturing |
| Higher temperatures | Various metal alloys | Specialized components and tools |
The byproducts of oxygen production—various metals—could be perfectly suited for construction. ATHLETE is envisioned as a mobile platform for additive construction (3D printing) using native materials. This could involve using regolith as raw material for building structures, landing pads, and radiation shields.
Recent experiments with Martian soil (which shares similarities with lunar regolith) show promising results. Scientists have successfully extracted pure iron metal from Mars soil simulant at around 1,000°C, with liquid iron-silicon alloys produced at 1400°C6 . As Professor Akbar Rhamdhani explains, "At high enough temperatures, all of the metals coalesced into one large droplet. This could then be separated from liquid slag the same way it is on Earth"6 .
ATHLETE uses excavation tools to collect lunar regolith from the surface.
Regolith is heated and subjected to electrolysis to separate oxygen from metals.
Oxygen is stored for life support and propulsion, while metals are used for construction.
ATHLETE uses additive manufacturing to 3D print structures using processed regolith.
Turning regolith into usable resources requires a suite of specialized technologies. ATHLETE would serve as the mobile platform that carries, positions, and operates these tools on the lunar surface.
| Tool/Technology | Primary Function | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Solar Thermal Reactors | Heating regolith to high temperatures | Provides energy for oxygen and metal extraction without Earth-supplied fuel |
| Electrolysis Systems | Separating oxygen from molten regolith | Produces breathable air and rocket oxidizer |
| Additive Construction Heads | 3D printing with regolith | Enables on-demand construction of habitats and infrastructure |
| Excavation Implements | Digging and moving regolith | Harvests raw materials for processing |
| Modular Brick Factories | Forming regolith into construction blocks | Creates standardized building materials |
In 2010, NASA put the ATHLETE rover through its paces in the Arizona desert during the agency's Research and Technology Studies (Desert RATS)5 . This wasn't a test in a controlled lab but a realistic simulation of how such technology would perform in an actual mission scenario.
The desert trial involved two ATHLETE rovers working in concert to transport a simulated habitat module across challenging terrain5 . The public was even involved in the test preparation, voting on which areas should be explored—with 67% favoring a location that appeared to be the site of several overlapping lava flows5 .
The ATHLETE vehicles demonstrated their capability as heavy-lift rover platforms that allow a habitat, or other large items, to go precisely where needed5 . They operated alongside other elements of a complete exploration system, including Space Exploration Vehicles (rovers astronauts could live in for weeks), a Habitat Demonstration Unit, and a Portable Communications Terminal5 .
| System | Function | Role in Mission Architecture |
|---|---|---|
| Space Exploration Vehicles | Crew mobility and habitation | Provides extended range for astronaut sorties |
| Habitat Demonstration Unit/Pressurized Excursion Module | Docking station and work area | Allows crew to transfer between vehicles without EVA |
| Portable Communications Terminal | Rapidly deployable comms station | Establishes reliable communication networks |
| Portable Utility Pallets | Mobile charging stations | Provides power resupply for field equipment |
The path forward involves several key milestones. NASA's Artemis program will lay the groundwork, with the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) scheduled to map water ice at the lunar South Pole in 20232 . Meanwhile, the European Space Agency has planned an ISRU Demonstration mission to the Moon by 20251 .
The true potential of ATHLETE lies in its versatility. As one research paper notes, ATHLETE can provide "precision positioning and mobility for site preparation and regolith construction needs," including "off-loading habitats, transporting surface assets, robotically assembling outposts from multiple mission manifests, and supporting science".
VIPER rover maps lunar water ice
ESA's ISRU Demonstration mission
Artemis program establishes sustained lunar presence
Advanced ATHLETE deployment for construction
As we look to the future, the vision expands beyond mere survival. The technologies developed for ATHLETE and lunar ISRU could lead to more efficient metallurgy on Earth6 . They could provide the blueprint for exploring Mars and beyond. Most importantly, they transform our relationship with space from visitors to residents, using the universal resources available to us to build a sustainable future beyond our home planet.
The age of packing everything we need from Earth is drawing to a close. The age of building with the materials we find along the way is just beginning.