Research Tasks

The goal of this work is to provide kilometer-scale mobility with centimeter-scale precision across and into the surfaces of Enceladus, comets, Europa, and Earth regardless of terrain complexity, including blocky chaos, vertical walls, crevasses, caves, fissures, and vents. Ice Worm combines research on novel grippers, limbed robots, and autonomy to provide a complete mobility solution. The robot has been field tested in glacier caves at Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens. Additional milestones are accomplished through advanced simulations and environmental chamber testing at JPL.