Photo: A film crew from the Daily Planet TV series of Discovery Channel Canada joined the PISCES team for a field test assessing the Helelani Rover rovers sensor and camera systems on October 27.
PISCES’ rover is no stranger to rough terrain, but its most recent outing introduced it to a whole new level of off-road. On Oct. 27, the PISCES team explored a remote, lunar-like location on Hawaii Island to test the robot’s camera systems and sensors in preparation for upcoming scouting missions to seek out a lunar base site. The event was caught on camera by the friendly crew of Daily Planet, a TV show that airs on Discovery Channel Canada. The crew got a first-hand look at the rover’s applications and capabilities – especially its gusto for traversing rugged terrain. On cue, the rover successfully maneuvered in and out of a four-foot-deep crater nestled amid boulders and jagged lava formations, all while capturing valuable landscape data including panoramic imagery and video.
“I’m very happy with the way the rover performed,” said PISCES Program Manager, Rodrigo Romo. “This is the roughest terrain the rover has seen yet, and its systems and performance exceeded my expectations.”