PROJECT SPACE: MOON ROCKET BUS

The Moebius Moon Rocket Bus from 2001: A Space Odyssey

The Rocket bus transports men and supplies across the airless lunar surface, using rockets underneath which maintain an equal distance with the ground, coupled with occasional bursts giving forward thrust.

It has three curious looking landing feet dubbed ‘walkers’, which I imagine are used to manoeuvre the landed Bus over short distances.

In the film, the Rocket Bus travels from Clavius base to the Tycho excavation site where the strange anomaly has been discovered.

The actual filming model was apparently two feet long, and there were rumours that following filming it was stored away at the studio. Sometime later it was subsequently taken home by a crew member, and given to the crew member’s son.  Sadly, so the story goes, it was eventually destroyed by fireworks.  

Brian Johnson took particular inspiration from the Rocket Bus when designing the Eagle Transporter seen in Space 1999.

Keeping with the Rocket Bus theme, there’s also a brief scene in Space: 1999’s opening episode, ‘Breakaway’ which shows a view through a window of an Eagle landing at Disposal Area 2. This is very reminiscent of a similar scene in 2001, were the Rocket Bus is landing at Tycho.  It’s also been noted that the Tycho excavation site has a similar feel to 1999’s Waste Disposal Area.