DAEDALUS Robot
The European Space Agency (ESA) has presented a robot-caver DAEDALUS, which in the near future will be engaged in the study of lunar caves.
The caves are considered as places where participants of future missions will be able to stay and take shelter from the harsh lunar conditions, as well as as sources of raw materials – primarily ice, necessary for obtaining water and creating rocket fuel. The main problem is that the entrances to most caves are vertical dips that are inaccessible to ordinary rovers. But this task will be able to cope with the robot type DAEDALUS, developed by engineers at the University of Julias-Maximilian in Würzburg.
DAEDALUS Robot
Upon reaching the surface of the Moon, DAEDALUS undocks from the delivery vehicle and pushes out special rods. With their help, he will be able to move, as well as remove obstacles and analyze lunar rocks. At the same time, it will be connected to the surface by a cable, which will turn into a Wi-Fi receiver and provide communication with the Ground. The robot will create a 3D model of the cave using lidar, as well as measure the temperature and radiation. To date, three DAEDALUS prototypes have been assembled to test the sensors and locomotion systems. The fourth is already much more functional and is a compact device with a set of additional functions and a high level of autonomy.
