How astronauts control robots from space
An ESA and DLR team member explains how astronaut Johnny Kim controlled robotic teams from the International Space Station during the Surface Avatar experiment.
In this talk
- 0:22
Testing control from orbit
From about 400 kilometers above Earth, astronaut Johnny Kim directed robots on the ground from the ISS. Surface Avatar, a joint effort by ESA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR), tests ways astronauts could work with robotic teams for future lunar and Martian exploration.
- 1:05
Collecting and transferring samples
On a simulated Martian landscape at DLR, ESA’s Spot robot autonomously found and gathered sample containers. At a handover point, Kim supervised DLR’s humanoid robot Rollin’ Justin, choosing and combining preset commands to move the samples to a lander.
- 2:43
Handling a cave mission failure
For a cave scenario, ESA’s Interact rover carried the smaller robot dog Bert to the entrance. Kim used Interact’s arm to clear a boulder and set Bert down; after Bert reported a damaged leg, he adjusted its walking algorithm remotely so it could continue and detect signs of ice.
- 3:44
Designing for recovery and teamwork
The team emphasized that robots need to recover from errors while completing complex tasks such as navigating and moving samples. Stable, secure links between the ISS and the ground were also part of the experiment. The team described progress from controlling one robot with simple commands to coordinating more complex teams, and imagined astronauts and robots exploring side by side.
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