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Meet ReachBot, a robot designed to explore the caves of Mars

(CNN)Exploring under the surface of other planets is whether life has ever existed outside the Earth. It can be the key to determining.

As other missions, including NASA's InSight landermission, show, it's difficult to dig into the surface of a planet like Mars. In the basement.
Recently,Curiosity Rover was the first to measure total organic carbonin Martian rocks, a necessary component of life's molecules. However, carbon can also be produced by non-biological sources and does not prove the existence of life on Mars.
According to new research, the most likely evidence of past or present life on Mars is to go below the surface of Mars.Mars is incredibly thin. atmosphere. This means that the surface of the red planet can be shocked by high-energy radiation from space, rapidly degrading substances such as amino acids that provide fragile evidence of life.

These harsh surface conditions are also a challenge for astronauts. This is one of the reasons scientists have suggested that caves on other planets may be the key to future exploration. The vast cave system of the Moon and Mars has the potential to serve as a haven for future space travelers.

Caves may contain resources such as water, revealing more about the history of the planet and could be a paradise for microbial life evidence. There is sex. There are various cave systems on Earth, many of which remain unexplored and support diverse groups of microorganisms. But the cave is dangerous. It's hard to know what to expect because you've never looked into a cave on Mars.

Before humans land on Mars and explore its basement, a group of scientists want to send ReachBot, a robot designed to crawl and climb extraterrestrial caves. I am.

Cave Exploration Robot

The idea for ReachBot was Marco Pavone, director of the Autonomous Systems Lab at Stanford University, and his students are Martian cave explorers.

They knew that they needed to grab an anchor point so that the robot could move without falling. If not enough anchor points are found, the robot will not reach that far.

One of his students suggested the idea of ​​a small robot with a telescopic arm that stretches like a tape measure. It can be used in the same way that Spider-Man slings the web to help navigate the New York City skyline.

The robot concept lies between the size of a basketball and an oven toaster and is expandable with a thorny gripper that can grab and push the steep rock surface of the Martian cave. It is covered with a boom. It will be able to fix itself and crawl long distances.

When you don't need the robot boom, roll it up out of the way.

Pavone, an associate professor of aerospace engineering at Stanford University's Faculty of Engineering, and his students came up with the idea of ​​a robot with an expandable boom. They have created a proposal to submit to NASA's innovative advanced conceptual program. This program will fund visionary concepts in the field of space robotics that have the potential to transform future missions.

The ReachBot concept received Phase I funding. This Phase I was used to carry out a series of investigations to prove that the concept is feasible.

Currently, ReachBot is receiving Phase II funding. The team will spend the next two years working on a 3D simulation that is a prototype of the robot, developing strategies to help the robot avoid risk, and a realistic mission environment (probably New Mexico). Test ReachBot at the State Cave Site). Mexico or California. These tests determine how ReachBot can be used for future research.

Exploring under Mars

When ReachBot becomes its own mission, it's bigger and more capable, like a rover, to access caves. May depend on the robot. To explore. The rover either delivers the Reach Bot to the entrance to the cave or drops it on the surface of a cliff where the Reach Bot can scale.

ReachBot may be equipped with a camera, a microscope, and a remote sensing technique called LIDAR. However, equipment requires power and adds weight in addition to the power and communication systems required by the robot. The

team expects ReachBot to be tied to a surface-bound rover. It powers and acts like a communication relay. Stephanie Newdick, a PhD student in aerospace engineering at Stanford University's Faculty of Engineering, said.

In addition to sending data to the rover, ReachBot also has a conveyor belt system that can collect samples and send them to the surface. According to Newdick, the rover is larger and equipped with equipment that can analyze the sample in detail.

The first discovery from ReachBot can determine the next step in a follow-up mission.

"Cave is a dangerous environment, but it's scientifically interesting," says Newdick. "Our idea for this robot is to go a long way before people get there and do interesting science and explore the area."

Future Objectives Earth

Martian caves are the only possible opportunity for robots like ReachBot. Pavone believes that these robots could work with humans in places like the International Space Station and handle some tasks to help astronauts make better use of their time.

The gateway, the lunar outpost that will exist between the Earth and the Moon, will not always be a crew member like the space station. Robots like reachbots can be maintained and maintained, according to Newdick. ReachBot can also crawl inside theMoon Cave, which can serve as a resource for astronauts exploring the Moon.

In the future, the team believes ReachBot is customizable for their destination and can influence design choices such as the size and number of expandable arms. ..

The end of the ReachBot's arm can also be equipped with scientific equipment that can enter small cracks or crevices that the robot cannot fit into.

Teams with so many features see their creation as a way to further explore the entire solar system, going to places that humans can't yet step on.