NASA Debuts New All Terrain Extraterrestrial Robot with Six Legs

NASA has announced that it has developed the next generation of rovers for sending to and studying planets, moons and even asteroids. The new robot, dubbed the All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer (Athlete), has six legs and 12 eyes and can carry around stuff that weighs up to sixteen tons. NASA has even released several videos demonstrating the new vehicle's capabilities.

The Athlete looks like something out of Star Wars, but everything on it NASA says has been designed for practicality. To that end, it can walk, rappel up a mountain, dance around or jump over objects. And even more fun, notes Gizmodo, it can be controlled by an Xbox Kinect or Nintendo Wii.

The Athlete is 13 feet tall and weighs two and a half ton, which means it's a lot bigger than the rovers we've seen wheeling around Mars. It's much stronger too, with independent servo-motors in each wheel. The legs are far more nimble then anything we've seen in an extraterrestrial vehicle too and can be retracted and turned to allow for tools that have been bolted on, to be used. A shovel, for example, or scoop can be attached and used by simple turning the feet one hundred and eighty degrees. And the wheels at the end of each foot can be locked, instantly converting them into feet to allow for walking, hopping, running or crawling over rocks much like a spider would do.

To allow for walking or rolling around in places that have far less gravity than here on Earth, NASA engineers have built in a counter-rotating auger anchor that rotates in different directions keeping Athlete stable.

NASA says Athlete will be used in the next few years, most likely to investigate asteroids or comets. But before it goes up, more testing will be done in real world environments to make sure that no matter what, it will not only keep functioning, but will be able to continue moving as well.

Athlete is also scheduled to go to the moon, or at least one of its kind is. NASA says it plans to make many versions of the rover to best carry out activities that scientists wish to have done. On the moon for example, Athlete would be used to find and examine rock samples, dig trenches and even perhaps build a station for eventual human habitation.

Thus far there is no word on the price tag for Athlete, and there may never be, as engineering costs are difficult to ascribe to any one project. Nonetheless, NASA has hinted that it's budget so far has topped a billion dollars.