Feed aggregator
Shape-Shifting Robots Mimic Muscle Movements
Researchers have developed a set of hexagon-shaped robotic components that can be snapped together into larger and larger structures. Each one of the component hexagons is made of rigid plates that serve as its exoskeleton. Driven by electricity, the plates can change their shape, shifting from long and narrow to wide and flat at high speed. The combined structures are capable of jumping four times their own body height, then can shape-shift to roll extremely fast, or use multimodal actuation to crawl through confined spaces.
The robotic components were developed at the Max-Planck-Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS). The modules are made of six lightweight rigid plates made from glass fiber that form a hexagon. Magnets embedded into the plates allows for quick connection to other components as well as providing a shared electrical ground between the modules.
Individual HEXEL modules combine soft artificial muscles with rigid components for fast and large motions. Credit: Zachary Yoder / MPI-IS Ellen Rumley / MPI-ISThe design team integrated artificial “muscles” into the inner joints of the hexagons, called hydraulically amplified self-healing electrostatic (HASEL) muscles. Applying a high voltage to the module causes the muscle to activate, rotating the joints of the hexagon and changing its shape from long and narrow to wide and flat.
“Combining soft and rigid components in this way enables high strokes and high speeds. By connecting several modules, we can create new robot geometries and repurpose them for changing needs,” said Ellen Rumley, a visiting researcher from the University of Colorado Boulder, in a press release from MPI-IS. Rumley and Zachary Yoder, who are both Ph.D. students working in the Robotic Materials Department, are co-first authors of a new paper, “Hexagonal electrohydraulic modules for rapidly reconfigurable high-speed robots,” published in Science Robotics.
The modules are reconfigurable, with an easy process of attaching or detaching the modules. Chains of modules can be rapidly connected and can operate from one voltage source. The modules can each have their own behaviors, which allows for various operations.
The team created a video to show the various configurations and behaviors that can be created with HEXEL modules. The modules can be seen rolling, dancing, jumping, crawling, and many other motions.
“In general, it makes a lot of sense to develop robots with reconfigurable capabilities,” said Yoder. “It’s a sustainable design option – instead of buying five different robots for five different purposes, we can build many different robots by using the same components. Robots made from reconfigurable modules could be rearranged on demand to provide more versatility than specialized systems, which could be beneficial in resource-limited environments.”
The post Shape-Shifting Robots Mimic Muscle Movements appeared first on Universe Today.
Educational Activities in Space
As students of all ages returned to school this month, crew members on the International Space Station continue to conduct a variety of educational programs and activities that support learning on the ground. These efforts are part of a wider commitment at NASA to engage, inspire, and attract future generations of explorers and to build a diverse future workforce equipped with skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
An Astrobee robot moves through the space station for the Robo-Pro Challenge.NASA
One current activity is Robo-Pro Challenge 5, an educational program hosted by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) in cooperation with NASA. For the challenge, students create software programs to control NASA’s Astrobee and JAXA’s Internal Ball Camera, using image processing to move the free-flying robots through a series of coordinates to a target point. The challenge helps support computing and coding curricula, and the hands-on experience inspires the study of STEM subjects.
Analyzing DNA in spaceGenes in Space is a national contest for students in grades 7 through 12 to design DNA analysis experiments for the space station. It is sponsored by the ISS National Lab and New England Biolabs in collaboration with Boeing and miniPCR bio. There have been more than a dozen contests to date, many producing significant results.
Genes in Space-5 provided proof of concept of simultaneously amplifying multiple DNA sequences in space, expanding the possibilities for in-flight research and health monitoring.
Genes in Space-6 used CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing for the first time in space, using the technique to generate breaks in the DNA of a common yeast, direct a method to repair the breaks, and sequence the patched-up DNA to determine whether its original order was restored.
Selin Kocalar, the student who designed the experiment on which Genes in Space-9 is based, prepares her samples for launch. Genes in Space
Genes in Space-9 validated technology used to synthesize proteins without needing living cells. This technique could produce proteins for research, vaccines, and development of diagnostic tests for environmental contaminants and infectious agents. Ultimately, such synthesis also could enable portable, low-cost devices for health monitoring, detection of environmental hazards on Earth and in space, and other applications.
Sending code to space ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet poses with the AstroPi Raspberry Pi computers. NASA
In addition to the Robo-Pro challenge, several other programs involve student coding. AstroPi, a program from ESA (European Space Agency), uses special computers, one equipped with an infrared camera and the other with a standard visible spectrum camera. European students write programs for the computers that address specific challenges such as measurement and calibration and image processing. One project successfully identified and computed the horizontal wavelengths of atmospheric gravity waves in clouds.
NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson performs a Zero Robotics demonstration with an Astrobee.NASA
Zero Robotics also is a competition where students write software to control one of the Astrobees, co-led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Innovation Learning Center, and other collaborators. Finalists have their code downloaded to the Astrobee platform and can observe its performance in space.
Students have good “HUNCHes” NASA Astronaut Mike Hopkins uses the HUNCH Tape Dispenser, which can be operated with one hand.NASA
High school students United with NASA to Create Hardware, or HUNCH, is a learning program where high school students design and fabricate real-world products for NASA. More than 2,500 students have participated to date, flying some 3,000 products to space, including a tape dispenser that can be operated with one hand, footpads, sleeping pad liners, and orange blackberry croissants and other food products.
Very long-distance calls NASA astronaut Suni Williams talks to students from Banda Aceh, Indonesia, during an ISS Ham Radio session.NASA
Through ISS Ham Radio, a collaboration with Amateur Radio on the International Space Station, students use ham radio to ask astronauts questions about life in space, career opportunities, and other space-related topics. Participating teachers report that the program has a significant and positive impact on students, increasing interest in all STEM areas. The experiences also help students make real-world connections among disciplines, learn problem-solving, and hone communication skills. To date, more than 100 crew members have communicated with over 1 million students from 49 U.S. states, 63 countries, and every continent.
Out-of-this-world videosDeveloped through NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, STEMonstrations are short educational videos demonstrating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics topics in microgravity for grades K through 12. The videos are available online and every STEMonstration includes materials teachers can use to explore the topics in their classrooms. Six videos released in the past 12 months have been viewed 98,705 times to date across various social media platforms. The program provides students with a connection to NASA and scientific work conducted on the space station, inspiring the next generation of explorers and contributing to a diverse future workforce.
Melissa Gaskill
International Space Station Research Communications Team
NASA’s Johnson Space Center
Search this database of scientific experiments to learn more about those mentioned in this article.
Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASALatest News from Space Station Research
Humans in Space
Station Science 101
Expedition 71Expedition 71 began on April 5, 2024 and ends in September 2024. This crew will explore neuro-degenerative diseases and therapies,…
NASA Helps Build New Federal Sea Level Rise Website
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) A Hampton, Virginia, street is flooded by an exceptionally high tide in 2020. Rising seas could make high-tide flooding much more common in coastal communities around the world.Aileen Devlin/Virginia Sea Grant CC BY-ND 2.0
Designed to be user-friendly, the resource contains the latest sea level data, explainers, and other information from several U.S. agencies.
The U.S. Interagency Task Force on Sea Level Change launched the U.S. Sea Level Change website on Monday, Sept. 23. Designed to help communities prepare for rising seas, the site features the latest science on changing sea levels, details about the impact on the environment and coastal communities, and strategies to mitigate the consequences. NASA led the development of the website for the task force.
“NASA, together with our partner agencies, has studied climate change and Earth’s rising seas for decades,” said Karen St. Germain, director of the Earth Science Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “The data collected by our satellites and ground-based instruments is crucial to helping policymakers and communities prepare for the consequences of sea level rise. By combining NASA data with information from other federal agencies, the U.S. Sea Level Change website is the latest example of government working for the benefit of humanity.”
Demonstrating a whole-of-government approach, the sea level task force sits within the U.S. Global Change Research Program and includes leading researchers from NASA, the Department of Defense, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
They’ve designed a user-friendly hub that brings together information on sea level change from the various federal agencies. While being detailed and accurate for resource managers, researchers, and others seeking more technical information, the website is intended to be accessible to anyone interested in the latest science and strategies to cope with rising seas.
“Everyone will have access to accurate sea level and flooding information in their favorite U.S. coastal city and see the timing of the projected increase in water levels and flooding frequency,” added Nadya Vinogradova Shiffer, who directs NASA’s sea level change team as well as the ocean physics program at the agency’s headquarters in Washington.
The contributing federal agencies focus on different aspects of sea level rise, including basic scientific research and the effects of rising seas on the environment, as well as infrastructure. With the new site, users can explore the topic from different angles.
“Having this information in one place, delivered in a consistent and authoritative way through a true interagency effort, represents a big step forward for how the federal government helps coastal communities prepare for future sea level rise,” said Ben Hamlington, a sea level researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.
Site visitors can find explainers on sea level science, summaries of what rising seas will look like for various parts of U.S. coastlines, and updates to the 2022 interagency report on sea level rise. The report concluded that U.S. coastlines will experience an average of 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 centimeters) of rise above current sea levels by 2050 and that the amount of rise in the next 30 years could equal the total rise seen over the past 100 years.
The report also outlined near-term sea level rise under various levels of greenhouse gas emissions, from best-case to business-as-usual to worst-case scenarios. The scenarios are based on improved scientific understanding of how melting glaciers and ice sheets — as well as upward and downward vertical land motion — will affect ocean heights at our coasts. The data and scenarios have been updated for the task force website.
NASA contributions to the 2022 interagency report, as well as to the newly launched sea level website, are part of ongoing agency work to understand Earth’s rising seas. NASA’s efforts to monitor the ocean span more than 30 years and include satellites such as Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich and the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission. Both were jointly developed by the agency and international and domestic partners. Agency partners on Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich include ESA (European Space Agency), the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites, and NOAA. For SWOT, NASA partners include the French space agency CNES (Centre National d’Études Spatiales), CSA (the Canadian Space Agency), and the UK Space Agency.
For more on how NASA studies our home planet, see:
News Media ContactsElizabeth Vlock / Aries Keck
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600 / 202-604-2356
elizabeth.a.vlock@nasa.gov / aries.keck@nasa.gov
Jane J. Lee / Andrew Wang
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-0307 / 626-379-6874
jane.j.lee@jpl.nasa.gov / andrew.wang@jpl.nasa.gov
2024-127
Share Details Last Updated Sep 24, 2024 Related Terms Explore More 4 min read Arctic Sea Ice Near Historic Low; Antarctic Ice Continues Decline Article 10 hours ago 4 min read New Video Series Spotlights Engineers on NASA’s Europa Clipper Mission Article 1 day ago 6 min read Celebrating 10 Years at Mars with NASA’s MAVEN MissionA decade ago, on Sept. 21, 2014, NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN) spacecraft…
Article 1 day ago Keep Exploring Discover Related TopicsMissions
Humans in Space
Climate Change
Solar System
Scientists have found evidence of past extreme solar storms. Their return could be disastrous for our technology-based societies
Axolotls seem to pause their biological clocks and stop ageing
Axolotls seem to pause their biological clocks and stop ageing
Witness the Galactic Civil War's last gasp in 'Star Wars: Battle of Jakku' miniseries
The fascinating truth about why common sense isn't really that common
The fascinating truth about why common sense isn't really that common
Girls in STEM Inspired to Fly High at NASA Kennedy
For the third straight year, scores of young women flew to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to learn how to make their aviation dreams take flight as part of the Delta Air Lines Women Inspiring our Next Generation (WING) program. Their Boeing 737 aircraft, piloted by an all-female crew, carried 130 girls, ages 11 to 18, who hail from Atlanta area schools and aviation organizations with a strong focus on STEM.
They departed Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport just after sunrise on Sept. 20 and just a few hours later, stepped onto the runway of Kennedy’s Launch and Landing Facility, where dozens of space shuttle missions landed and current-day NASA astronauts arrive at ahead of their launches to the International Space Station.
A Delta plane, carrying an all-female crew and 130 young women ages 11 to 18, received a “water salute” upon arrival on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at the Launch and Landing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.NASA/Kim Shiflett
“For more than 60 years, Kennedy Space Center has been the launching point for many of the missions that have inspired the nation and challenged generations of students to reach for the stars,” said NASA Kennedy Director Janet Petro. “As an aviator myself, today is especially exciting because it showcases the diverse range of career opportunities available to young women interested in pursuing fields in science, technology, engineering, and math.”
The girls received a bus tour of NASA Kennedy facilities and photo opportunities at Launch Complex 39B, where the first woman to set foot on the Moon will launch in the coming years on Artemis III. Then at the spaceport’s Space Systems Processing Facility, the girls heard firsthand from NASA Kennedy’s women leaders, who offered encouragement and words of wisdom.
“I want you to look around you. The young women in this room are going to be the trailblazers of the Artemis Generation,” said Dicksy Chrostowski, director of the Office of Communications at NASA Kennedy. “You may very well live and work on the Moon, or be one of our first visitors to Mars. There is always a path to greatness for you to take, even if it’s hard to find.”
The girls of the Delta WING flight finished their day exploring the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex before reboarding the plane for their return trip to Atlanta. The experience of visiting NASA’s iconic spaceport and the lessons imparted by the women of NASA resonated with the girls.
From left to right, Savitri Thomas, management and program analyst; Ales-Cia Winsley, lead Space Launch System avionics engineer; and Alexandra Philip, metrology engineer, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, speak on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, to the young women of the Delta WING flight about their NASA careers and the value of STEM education.NASA/Kim Shiflett
“As a woman of color, it’s great to see other women who look like me in these spaces and it’s very uplifting to hear their stories and how far they’ve come,” said Karsyn Britton-Mauge, a seventh grader from the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta. “Life is filled with ups and downs, and I am so inspired by the persistence in all the women who spoke to us today. They never stopped pursuing their dreams.”
The focus on STEM education as a path to a career in aviation has been a key feature of the annual Delta WING flight since the program launched in 2015. That’s when Delta General Manager of Pilot Development Beth Poole and Delta Pilot Cheri Rohlfing noted a conspicuous lack of women in certain roles of the airline industry, including mechanics, ground personnel, and especially pilots. They initiated Delta WING flights, spearheaded by Delta’s Flight Operations and organized and operated solely by women, as a way of inspiring and educating the next generation of young women on careers in aviation. This year’s trip to NASA Kennedy was the eighth Delta WING flight and third to Kennedy.
“The accomplishments of the future are going to be realized by the dreamers, innovators, and bright minds who are sitting in classrooms today,” Petro said. “And we want these students to know there is a place for them at NASA.”
Space Perspective completes 1st uncrewed balloon flight to the edge of Earth's atmosphere (video)
New image of China's secret space plane shows delta-wing design
Why Chemistry, Physics and Medicine Nobel Prizes can be Shared, and How That Works
Joint Nobel laureates aren’t necessarily direct scientific collaborators, and the prize money isn’t always split evenly
Orion spacecraft can shield Artemis astronauts from deep-space radiation, study shows
Geoengineering Wins Reluctant Interest from Scientists as Earth’s Climate Unravels
More and more climate scientists are supporting experiments to cool Earth by altering the stratosphere or the ocean
Draco mission made for destruction
Over the nearly 70 years of spaceflight, about 10 000 intact satellites and rocket bodies have reentered the atmosphere with many more to follow. Yet for such a ubiquitous event, we still lack a clear view on what actually happens to a satellite during its fiery last moments.
ESA is preparing the Destructive Reentry Assessment Container Object (Draco) mission that will collect unique measurements during an actual reentry and breakup of a satellite from the inside. A capsule especially designed to survive the destruction will transmit the valuable telemetry shortly after.