Records are being broken every day in space and on the ground at NASA, but one that is worth talking about is the testing of Surface Telerobotics. This new concept will allow astronauts to control the planetary rovers from spacecraft hovering above. On June 17 and July 26 the Remotely Controlled Planetary Rover was tested, and the scientists were shocked to find so many firsts for the Space Center. This test confirmed the first fully interactive working remote-controlled planetary rover that will be driven from an astronaut in space.
The K10 Black planetary rover navigating the boulder field in the Roverscape during a Surface Telerobotics Operational Readiness Test at NASA Ames.
The first test took place in the Roverscape at NASA's Ames Research Center, which acted as an earthly version of an outer-space surface that stretches two football fields long. In the three-hour test, the K10 planetary rover was commanded from space to make its way through a rocky, rough terrain. The next test was a continuation of the first study, with Expedition 36 Flight Engineer Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency behind the wheel, instead of Expedition 36 Flight Engineer Chris Cassidy of NASA, who drove the rover in the first test.
After the astronauts successfully drove the rover, NASA had officially deemed this the first planetary rover controlled from space working and will be ready for action after a final August test. Human Exploration Telerobotics project manager Terry Fong said that the K10 rovers are more intelligent that a rover one would simply control from the robot itself. Fong said, “Astronauts interact with the robots at a higher level, telling them where to go, and then the robot itself independently and intelligently figures out how to safely get there.”
The goal is to have the K10 rovers be able to work with astronauts and do the work that needs to get done on the planet while the controller watches from above. The rover has been measured to move three feet per second and has a 3D scanning laser system that will collect information and data. This four-wheel-drive and 4.5-foot-tall rover weighing over 200 pounds is expected to expand the places we are able to go in space.
Story via NASA.gov.
By Emily Bahr
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