Robots in Space(station)

[Kol DrakeModerator]

NASA is about to launch the last official shuttle mission, and part of the plan is to send up the first ‘robonaut’ which will live and work in the ISS and ‘be upgraded’ in the coming years to be fully formed and able to work ‘outside or inside’.  Pretty cool.

http://robonaut.jsc.nasa.gov/ISS/

[Kol DrakeModerator]

While a humanoid R2 unit is cool, way back around 2001 NASA had students come up with ideas for ‘micro robots’ for the ISS.  Many designs were sketched… but one stood out… one I had hoped they would use some day.

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2001/ast23jul_1/

http://psa.arc.nasa.gov/

Now, looks like between 2004 and 2006 they actually took some ‘spheres’ up to the ISS to see how early models would work…

http://ssl.mit.edu/spheres/videos.html

Sure wish they had taken it all the way…. sort of ‘in conjunction with’ the R2 units.  Would have been very cool.

[JaxKeymaster]

Get your government to support more money for research and they can.   I can’t wait to see the first pictures and videos of Robonaut outside station.

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