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ISRU Pilot Excavator

The ISRU Pilot Excavator (IPEx) will excavate soil on the surface of the Moon, or regolith, and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems.

Video collected during the NS-29 flight of regolith simulant flowing through a bucket drum in earth gravity and simulated lunar...
With the lights out, the ISRU Pilot Excavator digs in regolith bin during testing inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy...
The ISRU Pilot Excavator is tested in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida...
The ISRU Pilot Excavator is tested in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida...
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space...
Drew Smith, a robotics engineer, makes adjustments to the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) during testing in the...
A robotics engineer makes adjustments to the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) during testing in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
Drew Smith, a robotics engineer, makes adjustments to the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) during testing in the...
A robotics engineer makes adjustments to the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) during testing in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
A photo taken from the ISRU Pilot Excavator as it is tested in a blacked out facility with minimal lighting...
A photo taken from the ISRU Pilot Excavator as it is tested in a blacked out facility with minimal lighting that mimics the harsh, feature-less terrain of the Moon.
A photo taken from the ISRU Pilot Excavator as it is tested in a blacked out facility with minimal lighting...
A photo taken from the ISRU Pilot Excavator as it is tested in a blacked out facility with minimal lighting that mimics the harsh, feature-less terrain of the Moon.