The Collection de Voitures de S.A.S. le Prince de Monaco is hosting a summer‑long showcase of four cutting‑edge rover prototypes from Monaco’s Venturi Space and its North American partner, Venturi Astrolab. Open now until 2nd September 2025, the exhibition offers visitors a unique opportunity to explore lunar and Martian rovers destined for pioneering planetary missions.
On display are four groundbreaking rovers designed for the Moon and Mars. The lunar FLEX rover, developed by Venturi Astrolab, will journey to the lunar south pole via SpaceX in 2027, operating under Earth‑based control for scientific and commercial missions. It features revolutionary hyper‑deformable wheels and high‑performance batteries developed by Venturi Space’s teams in Switzerland and Monaco. Notably, NASA has pre‑selected it as part of its lunar return strategy.
Venturi Astrolab’s Martian FLEX rover similarly reflects the firm’s ambition to support public and private exploration of Mars. European‑made wheels and Monégasque battery systems again form its technical backbone.
The FLIP rover, slated to land at the lunar south pole in early 2026 aboard Astrobotic’s Griffin lander on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy, also incorporates Venturi‑developed wheels and batteries, demonstrating the robustness and modularity of their space mobility systems.
Finally, the Mona Luna rover, led by Venturi Space France in Toulouse in collaboration with Venturi teams in Monaco and Switzerland, is being developed under ESA and CNES auspices. Designed to achieve lunar deployment before 2030, it promises to deliver Europe’s first fully‑operational lunar rover.
Venturi’s space mobility continuum
Since shifting focus from electric race cars to space technology in 2021 under Gildo Pastor’s leadership, Venturi has pursued ambitious lunar mobility goals. The FLEX lunar rover will deploy groundbreaking hyper‑deformable wheels—featuring a network of 192 cables—developed in Switzerland and unveiled at the 2023 Paris Air Show. NASA’s selection of Venturi Astrolab for a viability study in 2024 underlines the strategic importance of these technologies.
European ambition on the Moon
Venturi’s Mona Luna project marks a bold step for Europe in lunar surface exploration. Publicised at June’s Paris Air Show, this 750‑kg, solar‑powered, European‑built rover is being readied for a South Pole mission by 2030. Each component reflects pan‑European industry collaboration: wheels from Switzerland, batteries from Monaco, and avionics and energy systems from Toulouse.
The exhibition runs until 2nd September.
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Photo credit: Michael Alesi, Prince’s Palace