XROV: An Immersive eXtended Reality (XR) Interface for Lunar Rover Mission Control

Abstract

peer reviewedThe Moon is once again a focal point for space exploration, with interest extending from space agencies to private companies. Recent discoveries of lunar resources and the potential to develop a lunar economy based on in-Situ Resource Utilisation (ISRU) have accelerated the development of advanced robotic technologies. This is clear in the increasing number of missions, with three landers deployed in 2024, and an additional three as of March 2025. To ensure successful robotic lunar operations, reliable human supervision and control are essential, supported by advanced systems that enhance operator situational awareness. This paper presents the eXtended Reality interface for lunar ROVer Mission Control (XROV) - a novel system designed to enable immersive teleoperation and monitoring of lunar rovers. XROV provides operators with an online 3D virtual reconstruction of the rover’s lunar surroundings using on-board sensor data, allowing them to visualize regions of interest from multiple perspectives and identify risks such as wheel-ground interactions and hazards with Artificial Intelligence (AI). Additionally, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) is proposed to improve human-robot interaction, displaying critical information such as rock coordinates, battery levels, and terrain elevation. XROV employs a human-in-the-loop approach, which is essential for ensuring adaptability and informed decision making during AI-assisted rover missions. The system was designed, implemented, and tested at the Lunalab, University of Luxembourg, where two experiments were conducted with different operators and real rovers. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of XROV in improving situational awareness, control, and user experience, making it a valuable tool for teleoperating rovers in hazardous and unexplored lunar environments