NASA Showcases Ultra-Nimble EV

NASA has unveiled a prototype electric car that can drive sideways and literally turn on a dime.

The 2,000-lb earthbound Modular Robotic Vehicle was developed at the Johnson Space Center in Houston to explore technologies for NASA's next-generation planetary rovers.

The MRV, which resembles a golf cart, can accelerate, steer and brake robotically, autonomously or under the control of a driver. The runabout is designed with a top speed of 40 mph but currently is computer-limited to 15 mph.

The topless EV measures seven feet long and five feet wide. Each of the vehicle's four wheels is powered by its own liquid-cooled electric motor. Each wheel can pivot 180 , enabling the MRV to zip around corners at virtually any angle or reverse direction by spinning around on its own axis.

NASA expects to apply the vehicle control software it developed for the MRV in a five-year venture with Nissan Motor Co.'s California research center. The partnership plans to begin testing autonomous vehicles at NASA's Ames Research Center in California later this year.