by It can now be revealed that Japan’s proposal for a lunar rover in the future is “more than meets the eye.”
As first announced last June but now starting to ship, a new scale model of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s (JAXA) Lunar Cruiser not only reproduces the details of the astronaut transport developed in collaboration with Toyota faithfully, but transforms into Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots.
Yes, Takara Tomy’s new toy is a cross between the real agency concept and Transformers, the “robots in disguise” franchise.
“Bring the ultimate Transformers experience to your collection with the Takara Tomy Transformers Lunar Cruiser Optimus Prime action figure!” The website of Habro’s Pulse, the toy company’s direct-to-fan online store, has taken $75 pre-orders for the Takara Tomy release. “This figure was designed to replicate the look of the Lunar Cruiser that will be previewed in 2019.”
Related: Meet the ‘Lunar Cruiser’: Japan’s giant lunar rover for astronauts gets a nickname
For the past five years, JAXA and Toyota have been advancing research into a vehicle that would enable continuous exploration of the lunar surface. Unlike the historic Apollo lunar rover and the lunar terrain vehicle or vehicles, or LTVs, that NASA has announced for the Artemis program, the Lunar Cruiser (named after Toyota’s Land Cruiser) is pressurized, allowing it to function as a camper van. for multi-day trips.
Toyota’s contributions to the six-wheeled JAXA rover include its fuel cell, which will power the vehicle, as well as a solar panel.
Takara Tomy’s model is based on the first version of the Lunar Cruiser, which featured more windows, larger tires and a wider high-gain antenna than a revised concept shown by JAXA and Toyota in October 2023.
Of course, neither iteration of the proposed rover could be a red, blue and gray robot. (If he’s unfamiliar, Optimus Prime, or Convoy as he’s known in Japan, is an idiot truck in his original configuration, though he took on other vehicles before becoming the Lunar Cruiser.)
It takes about two dozen moves to fold, turn, deploy and jump into (or conversely, back into the rover) the model’s entire robot form. Optimus stands about 7 inches (18 centimeters) tall and is made almost entirely of ABS plastic.
The included solar panel accessory folds in half to become a shield that Optimus Prime can hold or mount on his body. In Lunar Cruiser form, the solar panel can be mounted on the side of the vehicle (as proposed by JAXA and Toyota) or stored inside by opening the rover’s hatch.
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The Transformers Lunar Cruiser Optimus Prime isn’t the only time Transformers have ventured into space exploration, both on screen and in real life.
In the original 1980s cartoon, Astrotrain was an evil Decepticon who could turn into both a train engine and a space shuttle. In one episode, he transported Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons, to the moon, where they eventually faced Optimus and the Autobots.
Later, Hasbro and Takara Tomy introduced the Galaxy Shuttle, an Autobot that could transform into Orion’s winged orbiter, and Sky Lynx, which went from a bird-like creature (or “dino-bird”) to a space shuttle complete with a NASA logo . on the side of its cargo bay.
In “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”, the third film in the Michael Bay series, released in 2011, the plot revolves around a piece of technology that landed on the moon in the 1960s, rewriting the history of NASA’s Apollo 11 mission. . Part of the footage was shot at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and included scenes filmed inside the Vehicle Assembly Building and on Pad 39A with the space shuttle Discovery.
Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin had a cameo in “Dark of the Moon”, where he is seen meeting Optimus Prime. Later, the actor who voiced the character, Peter Cullen, recorded several videos for NASA, including an introduction to the agency’s television channel, a video celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Apollo program and an overview of the James Webb Space Telescope.
Recently, when Japan landed its first probe on the moon in January of this year, it deployed the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, a compact rover designed by Takara Tomy. The robot Sora-Q changed its shape from a sphere to reveal its cameras and use its two hemispheres as wheels.
Before the historic lunar touchdown, Takara Tomy released a toy version of Sora-Q, similar to the real rover on the moon, which was also able to transform.
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