Athabasca, Courage, Glacier or Pol-R? Canadian Space Agency seeks name for moon rover

LONGUEUIL, Que. — Canada’s new lunar rover will head to the moon when it’s built, but first it needs a name.

The Canadian Space Agency has begun polling the public on four possible choices: Athabasca, Courage, Glacier or Pol-R.

The rover, still in development, will be the first Canadian craft to explore the moon’s surface, with a launch scheduled for 2026 at the earliest.

It is expected to explore the lunar south pole, and among its tasks will be searching search for water ice, a key to the future of human space exploration of the moon.