Gold coast based company Gilmour Space Technologies may help NASA extract water on Mars after striking an agreement with the space agency. It is the first private Australian firm to ever do so. The Australian company is going to work with NASA to build an experimental rover which will be put on Mars by 2024. They will test the rover prototype at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida,on a mock Mars Environment.
The deal will allow Gilmour Space Technologies to work with NASA on fields like rocket launches, deep-space missions and life support systems.The private space company is known for its focus on rocket launches. The new deal with NASA means they will have access to different facilities to advance their testing. “It was a key demonstration of our hybrid rocket technology, in line with our mission to launch small satellites weighing up to 380kg to space by 2020,” said Mr Gilmour, CEO and Co-founder.
The Pimpama-based company has already created a prototype rover in partnership with university students in Singapore. It uses Microwave technology to melt ice that is mixed with Regolith, the Martian soil. The rover collects the steam and then converts it into water.
This is a step towards Mars colonization race of which NASA is also a part. SpaceX is already working on BFR, a rocket which will revolutionize space travel for the common crowd. Consider this a small step forward by NASA in the same direction.
Adam Gilmour has expressed his happiness on signing this deal in a statement: “NASA is a world leader in space exploration efforts, and we’re privileged to be able to work with them to develop and test some of our innovative new space technologies”.This is just a beginning for Gilmour Space Technologies which was founded in the year 2012 by Adam Gilmour, a former banker.