POWER SOURCES FOR MARS ROVER

By Maanit Arora 2K22/A17/37

A dependable power source is necessary for the Mars rover, a sophisticated
robotic device, to function on the Martian surface. In this report, I propose two
potential power sources for a Mars rover, with one serving as the primary
source and the other as a backup source for a two-sol trip. (Two Martian days). I
take into account how crucial it is to use resources wisely, such as power, water,
and food, as well as how crucial it is to optimise the rover's design to maximise
its capabilities while lowering its weight and power consumption.
As for the Primary source, I suggest going with solar panels as the main power
source. Previous Mars rovers, including NASA's Curiosity and Perseverance
rovers, successfully utilised solar panels. Despite the planet's thin atmosphere,
Mars nevertheless receives enough sunlight to support the rover's operations.
The efficiency of the solar panels and the amount of sunshine that is accessible
on Mars determine how much power is produced by the panels.
For a Mars rover, using solar panels as its main power source has a number of
benefits as Solar energy is a renewable energy source. It is easy to recharge as
long as there is sunlight and there won’t be any resources required for the
refuelling of the energy source. Hence space and weight inside the rover is also
saved when Solar energy is used as a primary source.
The possibility of dust storms makes using solar panels on Mars one of the key
difficulties. The solar panels' effectiveness may be lowered by dust
accumulation during dust storms, which may have an impact on the rover's
power supply. The solar panels on the rover are made to be self-cleaning,
employing vibration or other processes to shake off dust in order to reduce this
risk. The rover can be configured to turn off non-essential systems or use the
backup power supply, if available, to save energy during dust storms.

Hence, a secondary power source is also necessary for a successful expedition

of a Mars Rover as due to many unexpected reasons, the primary power source
might fail or get depleted. A popular secondary backup source is radioisotope
thermoelectric generators (RTGs).
For instance, The Perseverance rover requires electrical power to operate. The
dependable flow of electricity for the rover comes from a power system known
as a Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG),
provided to NASA by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

The MMRTG converts heat from the natural radioactive decay of plutonium-
238 into a steady flow of electricity. The power system will reliably produce
about 110 watts (similar to a light bulb) at the start of Perseverance's mission,
declining a few percent each year in a very predictable way. The MMRTG
doesn't just power the rover; excess heat from it keeps the rover's tools and
systems at their correct operating temperatures.

As for what I think, another good secondary power source or backup power
source would be advanced lithium-ion batteries which can be pre charged
before the launch of the rover and can be used when required. But a drawback
of this is that the energy stored in this is limited and finite. Also energy
provided by the batteries can be affected by the harsh conditions of Mars and
the electricity provided by the batteries are very much dependant on the
temperature around it.

We can also use some different ways for power sources like the sterling engine,
which converts heat energy to mechanical energy to electricity by using the
temperature difference between a hot source (such as a radioisotope heater or a
concentrated solar collector) and a cold source (such as the Martian atmosphere)
to drive a piston and generate power. But its efficiency is limited.

So in conclusion, a power source like solar panels is most suitable for a Mars
rover for two sols (Two Martian days) and backup source can be RTGs, just like
in Perseverance and Curiosity Mars Rover