Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre to Equip Lunar Rovers With AI
Rashid Rover 2 has completed testing and is preparing with Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost 2 for an early 2026 far side landing attempt.
The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre will equip future lunar rover vehicles with artificial intelligence-powered navigation to enable real-time environmental perception and autonomous driving on the Moon’s surface. The system combines a radiation-tolerant computer with AI-driven software and onboard cameras so a rover can identify and avoid obstacles independently. The centre is collaborating with the Technology Innovation Institute and Aspire, subsidiaries of Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council. Development and testing of the Emirates Lunar Mission’s Rashid Rover 2 have been completed, with the rover shipped to the United States following environmental and functional tests in the UAE. The rover is now in preparation with US-based Firefly Aerospace for a mission scheduled for next year. Rashid 2 is set to fly aboard the Blue Ghost 2 lander, with launch targeted for early 2026 and a 10-day landing attempt on the far side of the Moon. This will be the space centre’s second lunar landing attempt following the loss of the first Rashid rover in April 2023, when Japan’s Hakuto-R Mission 1 lander crashed on the lunar surface.
