The aeronautical agency NASA has been sending robots to Mars since the second half of the 20th century. The Mars rovers are usually equipped with several bicycles and can only move on flat terrain. But the distant planet is full of mountains, rocks, and even caves. Modern cars can’t move over heavy surfaces, so the agency decided to develop new Mars rovers that can work as a team and keep their balance anywhere. They are based on the Boston Dynamics Spot robot dog design. Three robot dogs are currently being planned to land on Mars, striking each other and penetrating deep caves. Maybe they’ll be able to find life in the caves, or at least the remains of it. NASA’s new project is called Mars Dogs and clearly needs to be discussed at length. After all, we’re talking about technology that helps us learn more about the planet our descendants may be living on.
Mars rovers of the future
The use of Boston Dynamics robots on Mars was discussed at the American Geophysical Society (AGU) online conference. Introduced in 2016 by Spot technology, the four-legged robots move through space using 360-degree cameras. On their feet, they can reach speeds of up to 5 km/h and easily overcome obstacles. The design weighs 25 kilograms, making them one of the lightest robots in the world. It is probably because of their skill and lightness that NASA employees turned their attention to these Mars rovers. After all, the surface of Mars is full of irregularities, and sending lightweight cargo to Mars saves money.
The space agency plans to send modified robots called Au-Spot to Mars. What changes there are in the design is not yet known. But it is planned to send three robots connected by cables to a distant planet. One robot will be able to go deep into the caves, while the other two robots will provide it. Scientists believe that even if they fall, nothing will happen to the robots, because thanks to their algorithms they can get out of any situation. Given their ability to work as a team, there shouldn’t be any problems.
