THE NEW NASA PROSPECTOR MINING SCOUT CONCEPT

 I like this new Prospector design concept by Marc Senger.

It even folds up and takes off! Do you like it?

ANT THRILLS

 I caught these old NASA prints on old auctions so kept the images.

The Grumman MOLAB on its test bed travels, a superb lunar concept workhorse known to Project SWORD fans as the ANT.

Do you any old NASA prints like this?

THE TARHEEL COVER: MAKING AN IMPACT

The recent revelation that was the American Tarheel Project SWORD dealers catalogue I've been pondering the possible origin of that strange and huge disco ball on a stand to the right.

More to the point, I've been pondering the spidery base it has and I believe its this... the surface lander baseplate of the Moon Prospector concept shown here in 1961 in Newsweek a cover painted by Jo Kotula. You can just see half of it behind the Prospector.

Here's a much clearer NASA concept drawing, where the baseplate is very distinct, the legs spread out like a spider. NASA called it an Impact Absorber, a device to assist in landing the Prospector - the Roving Vehicle - on the Moon as part of the SURVEYOR programme. It would have made a great toy accessory [anyone care to make one?]

The bendable legs are even clearer in this related 1960 NASA  concept, the Stationary Packet, where the Prospector has yet to disengage from the plate and rove. 

The bent legs are almost a mirror image of those beneath the big 'disco' ball on the Tarheel SWORD cover above.

I can't ID the Tarheel disco ball and its lollipops but I think this explains their spidery base.

What do you reckon readers?

NASA Armoured Vehicles

Here is a video from Mark Felton Productions on the use of the M113 Armoured Personnel Carrier by NASA.

In the event that something went wrong on the launch tower, astronauts could leave their rocket or the Shuttle, get in to a metal cage, then descend down an escape line to a bunker 1200 feet away, jump in to a waiting APC, and drive away, protected by the armour of the vehicle.

Rescue crews also used the M113, and NASA had a small fleet of them. This was the standard US Army troop carrier at the time, and has seen action in countless wars.

The vehicles shown in the video are a light green, but I recall seeing photographs of all-white vehicles in a space magazine many years ago. That was the first time I had heard of NASA using armoured vehicles.

Being such a widely used vehicle, there are many kits of the M113 series, in various scales. So modelling one of these vehicles would be fairly straightforward.

There are some changes, such as the strictly military equipment being removed, like the folding bow plate at the front; and the fitting of extra lights. As far as I know there are no kits of the NASA vehicles, which seems really odd.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qH8IKG9cjU8

Paul Adams from New Zealand

NASA MOON LANDING 8PM TONIGHT UK TIME!

 Watch INTUITIVE land live on NASA's stream!

Gorblimey! I'm excited!

https://plus.nasa.gov/scheduled-video/intuitive-machines-1-lunar-landing/

Goodbye Ingenuity

 NASA's Martian copter is no more.

It's reddened  rotoring is sadly over, joining Man's scrapyard of dead space tech.

So long chopper.

THE MATCHBOX SKY BUSTERS DREAM CHASER

The Matchbox Dream Chaser has been mentioned before on Moonbase Central, but it seems to be a fairly hard model to track down. 

I finally found one, so I thought you might like some photos of it. 

Not exactly a pretty craft, with its upturned nose, but a welcome addition to the ranks of Real Space models.

The Dream Chaser is a small, re-usable space shuttle, built by the Sierra Nevada Corporation in America. It is intended to produce both unmanned cargo, and manned versions (with seating for up to seven astronauts). The first mission is now due in 2022, a little later than originally planned. It will be used to carry cargo and personnel to the International Space Station. The launch vehicle being a Vulcan Centaur rocket.

Here is the Wikipedia entry for the craft.

Dream Chaser - Wikipedia

The Matchbox Dream Chaser is part of the Sky-Busters line, and was first released in 2019, model number SB143. Length 91 mm. The black base and engine bells are metal, with the rest of the model being either black or white plastic. The cockpit windows are opaque, so there is no interior. The black plastic undercarriage is fixed, and the wheels do not revolve. The tampo printing is well done, in red, blue, black, and yellow.

The information cast in to the underside comprises the model name Dream Chaser - SIERRA NEVADA, Matchbox, © 2017 Mattel, the number SB143, MADE IN THAILAND, and a tiny elephant.

The card for the original 2019 version had a cloudy sky background, and a red stripe at the bottom. The 2021 card is orange, with the planet Earth providing a background to the model. The craft themselves appear to be the same.

Matchbox Wiki page for the Dream Chaser.

Dream Chaser (SB-143) | Matchbox Cars Wiki | Fandom

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Addition: Hot Wheels branded Skybusters!

THE NASA SEV/ CHARIOT

Matchbox first released the NASA S.E.V./Chariot space exploration vehicle as part of the 2018 line, in white and gold, with NASA markings. It was a short-lived model, and was gone by the following year.

At the latest model fair in Auckland, I was able to pick up a new version. This is part of the 2022 Collectors Series, which comprises 20 models. The Chariot is 11/20, meaning model 11 in the series of 20.

It is an enhanced version of the original model - and it looks spectacular. Although the basic colour scheme is the same as before, the finish is much more detailed.

The lower body is moulded in a light gold plastic (much lighter than the previous version). Only the upper body is metal, and painted gloss white. The cab windows are tinted light blue. The wheel hubs are gold chrome, with light grey tyres.

Tampo printing includes yellow on the raised pipework. US flags and NASA emblems, including one on the roof of the cab. The lights are silver, edged in black; with a row of white lights on the gold lower body.

The Collectors Series models are bubble-packed atop cardboard boxes. These boxes are of standard dimensions, rather than being sized to each model. So, if you open the packaging and put the models in to their boxes, they frequently rattle around, risking damage.

The box and backing card are mainly blue and yellow, just like early Matchbox boxes. The copyright date is 2022. Made in Thailand.

Here is my earlier look at the basic model:

https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2020/04/the-nasa-moon-chariot.html

Paul Adams from New Zealand

NASA Mars Exploration Newsletter: April 2023

Rovers-eye View of Mars Helicopter Flight; New Online Sample Return Info; Clouds Adrift Over Mars 

April 2023 How Mars Rock Samples Would Make Their Way to Earth How on Earth will we get rock samples from Mars back to our planet? Find out how multiple spacecraft would work together to get the job done.   Lander | Rocket for Mars | Helicopters | More Info Featured Sample Return: Partners Map Who's at work on the quest to return Mars samples to Earth? Explore this interactive map to see which institutions around the world are teaming up for this enormous challenge. Interactive Map › Latest Mars Sample May Have River Origin The first sample gathered in the Perseverance rover's new science campaign may have formed from rock deposits swept downstream by an ancient river.   Read More › Engineers Track Fuel Supply of Oldest Mars Orbiter It's a tricky task monitoring Odyssey's fuel levels after 22 years in Mars orbit, since it has no fuel gauge or low-fuel warning light like cars on Earth. Read More › Multimedia FEATURED VIDEO Perseverance Catches Mars Helicopter in Flight Watch video captured by the rover as Ingenuity lifted off on its 47th flight, kicking up a dust cloud, climbing higher, then flying horizontally and heading out of view to land safely. Watch Video › FEATURED IMAGE Early Morning Clouds Drift Over Mars  The cloudy season is back at Jezero Crater, and Perseverance has been watching the skies, glimpsing ethereal clouds just before sunrise. Read More › Participate Fly Your Name on a Future Mars Mission Get your "boarding pass" and join more than 23 million people sending their names to Mars on a future NASA mission. Sign Up › Students Receive Messages from the Rover NASA's ongoing "You've Got Perseverance" campaign has honored nearly 100 students for overcoming academic obstacles with a personal message from Mars. Learn More › Blogs Get the Latest Mars Updates  Follow the adventures of the Mars rovers Curiosity and Perseverance, along with the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, via updates written by team members. Curiosity Rover Blog Perseverance Rover Blog Ingenuity Helicopter Blog Follow Us on Social Media Follow us for unique first-person updates direct from our robots on Mars, and follow our flagship account for news from all Mars missions. @NASAPersevere @MarsCuriosity @NASAMars mars.nasa.gov You're receiving this email because you signed up to receive the Mars Newsletter and/or notifications of "Send Your Name to Mars."

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