Danish astronaut Andreas Mogensen, known for his love for space robots, will soon have the opportunity to control Rollin’ Justin, a popular humanoid robot on the International Space Station (ISS). Mogensen is part of SpaceX’s Crew-7 mission for NASA, which includes a team of talented astronauts.
During his six-month mission, Mogensen will analyze four different robot concepts, with Rollin’ Justin being one of them. Excitement surrounds this collaboration as Mogensen has been observing other astronauts utilizing the robot and is eager to get hands-on experience working with it.
Just recently, the German space agency (DLR) announced that NASA astronaut Frank Rubio utilized Rollin’ Justin to explore a Mars-like landscape. The robot, equipped with compliant, lightweight arms and four-finger hands, proves itself immensely useful for various tasks, including maintenance, material classification, and potentially allowing astronauts to focus more on scientific research.
Mogensen’s upcoming experiment contributes to over a decade of research and development surrounding space-controlled robots with the European Space Agency (ESA) and DLR. He praises the force feedback on his controller, which enables him to “feel” his way while controlling the ground rover.
This coincides perfectly with NASA’s plans under its Artemis program to send astronauts back to the moon’s surface. The agency, in collaboration with its partners, is considering the utilization of robots for a wide range of tasks. In fact, various space agencies and private companies are actively working on ventures to send rovers, landers, and other tools to the moon.
As technology advances and exploration continues to expand, the implementation of robots in space missions has become increasingly significant. The opportunity for Mogensen to work with Rollin’ Justin further solidifies the importance of these advancements in enabling humans to explore and conduct research in space more efficiently.
Keep an eye out for more updates as the Crew-7 mission progresses, bringing us closer to a future where humans and robots work together harmoniously in the realm of space exploration.
