NASA has announced that it will be testing their latest 'Curiosity Mars Rover IV' planetary investigation vehicle in Oxford as from 2020.
William B Sharfenzimmer Junior of NASA's interplanetary transit team revealed in a recent interview with 'Speed & Power' magazine "We know from previous satellite planet orbiting missions around Mars and the current landed mission that the surface is incredibly uneven and challenging and we have to test the new 'Curiosity Mars Rover IV' on comparable terrain in order to guarantee mission success".
In 2017, NASA contemplated building it's own rough terrain mock up facility replicating Mar's Mount Sharp in Philadelphia until a chance vacation brought engineer William Sharfenzimmer to Oxford who within minutes of his arrival realised that the test facility was already built and available in the UK.
The US$ 472 million 'Curiosity Mars Rover IV' will undergo nine months of preliminary terrain testing in Houston before being shipped to Oxford, England for the final testing described as 'brutal' by NASA along the stretch of pavement between Beaumont Street and Little Clarendon Street. Link
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