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Motion capture is guiding the next generation of extraterrestrial robots

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“How do we build robots that can optimally explore space?” is the core question behind Dr Frances Zhu’s research at the University of Hawai’i. One part of the answer is, “with motion capture”.

“It is my hope that my research contributes to the way extraterrestrial robots move and make decisions on other planets,” explains Zhu (main picture), an assistant researcher and deputy director at the University’s Hawai‘i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology.

That research is in its early stages, but NASA has seen the value in it and awarded Zhu an EPSCoR grant by the name “Autonomous Rover Operations for Planetary Surface Exploration using Machine Learning Algorithms”. [Read more…] about Motion capture is guiding the next generation of extraterrestrial robots

Perseverance’s first year on Mars: Purdue professor, mission team member looks at what is ahead

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Almost one year into the Mars rover mission, accomplishing its goal is on the horizon for Purdue University’s Briony Horgan and the Perseverance team.

February 18 will mark one year since the rover landed on the red planet following a seven-month, 300-million-mile flight across space.

Horgan, associate professor of planetary science in the Purdue College of Science’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, says anticipation is building as the team focuses on the mission goal: researching a now-dry large river delta. [Read more…] about Perseverance’s first year on Mars: Purdue professor, mission team member looks at what is ahead

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Was there ever life on Mars?

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The Mars rover exists for one reason: To find out if there was ever life on Mars.

NASA’s Perseverance rover touched down on the Red Planet on February 18, 2021, marking a major step in a mission that has captured the hearts and minds of space enthusiasts around the world – and that will pave the way for human expeditions by the 2030s.

And, as with just about any space mission, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes that will determine whether the mission succeeds. Perseverance’s job is to drill into the Martian surface to collect rock and soil samples. Those samples will be stored in sealed tubes and wait to be ferried back to Earth for analysis on a future mission. [Read more…] about Was there ever life on Mars?

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Earthlings send three separate missions to Mars

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Earthlings have sent three separate missions to Mars which will all reach the Red Planet within the next few days.

One of them was sent by the United States’ National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and is scheduled to land on 18th February 2021.

NASA’s spacecraft carried the Perseverance Rover (main illustration), a wheeled robotic vehicle which sports a robotic arm built by Motiv Space Systems, whose CEO Robotics and Automation News interviewed in September last year. (See video below.) [Read more…] about Earthlings send three separate missions to Mars

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    Was there ever life on Mars?The Mars rover exists for one reason: To find out if there was ever life on Mars. NASA’s Perseverance rover touched down on the Red Planet on February 18, 2021, marking a major step in a mission that has captured the hearts and minds of space enthusiasts around the world…
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