In Pictures: Exploring Mars with Curiosity
In Pictures: Meteors
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Dancing with the Stars
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Black Holes
In Pictures: Space Photos of the Day: Asteroids
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Visions of the future
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Massive Storms
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Gas giants
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Heavenly Rings
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Female Astronauts
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: The Moon
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: A Blue Planet
Dextre, the Canadian Space Agency's robotic 'handyman,' is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 26 crew member aboard the International Space Station on Feb. 3. Dextre completed its first real job since the robot passed its final exam in December 2010, unpacking two critical pieces of equipment delivered by the unpiloted Japanese Kounotori2 H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV2) spacecraft .
Astronauts Carl J. Meade and Mark C. Lee test the new Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER) system some 130 nautical miles above Earth. The pair was actually performing an in-space rehearsal of a contingency rescue using never-before flown hardware. Meade, who here wears the small back-pack unit with its complementary chest-mounted control unit, and Lee anchored to the Space Shuttle Discovery's Remote Manipulator System (RMS) robot arm, took turns using the SAFER hardware during their shared space walk.
Robonaut 2, or R2, will be the first human-like robot in space when it flies on Discovery inside the PMM to become a permanent resident of the station on Feb. 24. R2 is the next generation dexterous robot, developed through a Space Act Agreement by NASA and General Motors at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander monitors the atmosphere overhead and reaches out to the soil below in this artist's depiction of the spacecraft fully deployed on the surface of Mars. The mission responds to evidence returned from NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter in 2002 indicating that most high-latitude areas on Mars have frozen water mixed with soil within arm's reach of the surface.
FIDO uses a robot arm to manipulate science instruments and it has a new mini-corer or drill to extract and cache rock samples. Several camera systems onboard allow the rover to collect science and navigation images by remote-control. The rover is about the size of a coffee table and weighs 150 pounds.
NASA's T-1 Robot is seen in the 'sandbox' testing area at Ames Research Center.
NASA's Centaur, the half-humanoid, half-vehicle robot pictured in the foreground, is ready for a day's work in the high desert of Arizona. Centaur participated in the NASA's testing of the next generation of space equipment during the Desert RATS field test.
In a testing procedure, the X-37B robotic space plane taxis on the flightline March 30, 2010, at the Astrotech facility in Titusville, Fla.
In this artist's concept, two extra-vehicular astronauts have prepared an autonomous robot to embark on its mission of collecting samples from the Martian surface. After verifying that all configurations are calibrated for their local environment, the two crewmembers will release the robot, allowing it to perform its tasks over the upcoming days.
The X-45 is an unmanned, autonomous combat air vehicle that flies high-risk operational missions and delivers precision weapons on target. Controlled via either line-of-sight or satellite communications, the X-45 is highly adaptable to changing battle conditions and can provide 24/7 electronic attack, reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence gathering as well as engage in deep strikes to complement manned fighter and bomber forces.
It's just another day of work for NASA's Desert RATS, a group of more than 100 scientists and engineers participating in field tests in Arizona's high desert. Robots, rovers and space suited subjects test the latest interplanetary gear, trekking over some of the state's harshest topography. In this photo, Centaur (far l.) is joined by the K-10 robot with its 3-D vision and a futuristic lunar vehicle known as SCOUT.
A new robotic device that safely strips paint from the hulls of ships without polluting the environment is shown in action at the National Robotics Engineering Consortium at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. The device was developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, the consortium, and UltraStrip Systems, Inc., Stuart, FL.
Robotics engineers Lyndon Bridgwater, Phil Strawser, Nic Radford, and Kris Verdeyen (from left) prepare Spidernaut, a robot prototype under development at NASA's Johnson Space Center, for a demonstration. A similar arachnid-robot may one day carry large payloads across lightweight trusses and solar arrays or deploy a 'web' of space tethers to cross structural spans of future space vehicles.
The Space Shuttle Endeavour's robotic arm hovers over Earth's horizon, backdropped by a starburst from the Sun. This photo was taken during the STS-77 shuttle mission in 1996.
NASA's Dr. Garnett Hornor holds a Robot Arm. 'The idea of the robot arm is to avoid using people to do hazardous waste cleanup, which would involve prolonged exposure to contamination,' said Dr. Horner, the researcher in charge of the project.
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The SpaceX Dragon capsule successfully docked with the International Space Station. Now, it heads back to earth.
The SpaceX Dragon capsule became the first commercial vessel in history to dock with the International Space Station last Thursday. Now, after approximately a week in orbit, the Dragon will return to earth. According to reps for SpaceX, a private company headquartered in California, the Dragon will detach from the International Space Station this Thursday morning and land a few hours later somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.
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