Audi's moon rover makes its film debut in 'Alien: Covenant'
Yes, Audi built a moon rover.
The Audi Lunar Quattro is heading to the far reaches of outer space -- on the silver screen.
Audi's concept lunar rover will finally get its time in zero gravity, with the help of Ridley Scott. The Lunar Quattro will make its cinematic debut in "Alien: Covenant," the next chapter in the movie series that has captivated audiences since 1979.
If Johnny Five and Wall-E had a baby, it'd be the Audi Lunar Quattro.
"The 'Alien' franchise is the best way for us to garner suitable attention for the Moon rover developed by Audi, and to showcase Audi's intelligent technologies in a visionary environment," Giovanni Perosino, Audi's vice president of international marketing communication, said in a statement.
The rover will play a pivotal role in the upcoming film. It will help the colony ship Covenant explore a new world that -- as you might guess, based on traditional movie tropes -- seems fine at first, but turns out to be something delightfully nefarious. Will there be aliens? Probably!
Audi originally built this concept in conjunction with the group Part Time Scientists, in order to win Google's Lunar XPrize competition. The goal was to build a rover that could cover 500 meters of lunar surface while sending high-definition photos back home. It weighs just 66 pounds, and its 85-percent-aluminum frame was constructed in part using Audi's metal 3D-printing process.
The rover is, of course, all-wheel drive, and it's expected to take an actual trip to the moon... some time in the future.
