ispace's European subsidiary ispace EUROPE and Italy's ALTEC have signed a memorandum and begun considering conducting lunar rover functional testing and operations training at ALTEC's facilities.
ispace announced that its European subsidiary ispace EUROPE and Italy's ALTEC had signed a memorandum to explore potential collaboration, including lunar rover testing and operations training. The parties aim to verify rover performance in an environment simulating the lunar surface and develop a training framework.
The collaboration is expected to cover functional testing of the rover and related equipment, mission simulations, and rehearsals for operations personnel, as well as training and certification programs for operations teams.
ALTEC is an Italian company based in Turin. In addition to its experience operating ESA's ROCC, it is developing a lunar simulation center. ispace EUROPE views the collaboration as an opportunity to use testing and operations facilities in Europe.
The announcement indicates an intention to advance preparations for lunar missions in Europe by verifying lunar rover technology and strengthening the training framework.