Advances in rover technology for space exploration

As NASA's two Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) continue their second year of operation at the red planet, the importance of surface mobility to space science is ever more apparent. In this paper we discuss some key problems in advancing performance of autonomous planetary rovers for future missions. Among the topics covered are the safe and accurate traverse of rough, science rich terrain, accurate localization and navigation of large terrain expanses, time-efficient and precise placement science instruments on targets of interest, on-board science data processing, and development of higher-level on-board "decision" skills. We also briefly discuss the development of a class of multi-robot systems that move beyond objectives of planetary science toward eventual emplacement and maintenance of planetary outposts for human-robotic exploration as articulated in the recent Vision for Space Exploration by George W. Bush