Testing Out JPL’s New Snake Robot

A team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is creating and testing a snake-like robot called EELS (Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor). Inspired by a desire to descend vents on Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus and enter the subsurface ocean, this versatile robot is being developed to autonomously map, traverse, and explore previously inaccessible destinations on Earth, the Moon, and other worlds in our solar system.

The robot has been put to the test in sandy, snowy, and icy environments, including the Mars-like terrain at JPL’s Mars Yard, a “robot playground” created at a ski resort in the snowy mountains of Southern California, and even an indoor ice rink.

Because of the long communications lag time between Earth and deep space, EELS is designed to autonomously sense its environment, calculate risk, travel, and gather data with yet-to-be-determined science instruments. When something goes wrong, the goal is for the robot to recover on its own, without human assistance.

The project team began building the first prototype in 2019, and has been making continual revisions. They’ve been trying out white, 3D-printed plastic screws for testing on looser terrain like sand and soft snow, as well as sharper, black metal screws for ice. In its current form, the EELS 1.0 robot weighs about 220 pounds (100 kilograms) and is 13 feet (4 meters) long.

EELS is funded by the Office of Technology Infusion and Strategy at JPL in Southern California through a technology accelerator program called JPL Next. JPL is managed for NASA by Caltech in Pasadena, California. The EELS team has worked with a number of university partners on the project, including Arizona State University, Carnegie Mellon University, and University of California, San Diego. The robot is not currently part of any NASA mission.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

[BraxtonHoward]

So we're the aliens dropping terrifying robot snakes on other planets? Awesome!

[robertshay]

Well it definitely looks very versatile as long as you have an understanding of the terrain it will face. Very cool

[clqudy]

Now, can it be made to deploy by springing out from a giant can of Pringles?

[TheAziz]

I see where this is going. I need some acid arrows and a blast sling ASAP.

[lars]

Would make a tough to spot drone for the military.

[qarnos]

What happens if you send it all the way to Europa only to find they use European power sockets?

[sekbb]

Looks like a perfect present for next valentines day!!!

[oida]

My -hovercraft- spacecraft is full of EELS!

[TheInfinitySystem]

Okay, gotta say if I were an alien and saw one of these slither towards me...

Gonna get hit with a rock.

[corrinastanley]

Really cool, will it have charging stations scattered around it to recharge it and relay data back?

[prakharjainxi]

How it will walk on rought surface and small mountains

[taucix]

Danke für das Video 😀😀😀😀😀 macht Moor Meer

[betooo]

can be used to find missing people under rubble.

[jangschoen]

Allen Pan probably wants to give them legs.

[heathb]

It is funny how they are acting like this is awesome new stuff when all they had to do was call DARPA. They had one climbing trees and fences 10 years ago.

[ALAPINO]

I showed this to my snakes. They didn't care.

[mikegb]

Now that I've watched this video, my first thought is, "How is it powered?" The tech for this kind of robotics doesn't seem that difficult. But if you've found a way to keep it powered over a multi-year mission, that is a big deal. That's what I want to hear about.

[GregBadabinski]

I feel that this concept would benefit from the introduction of a robotic badger and a synthetic mushroom.

[karlstenator]

Does it come in pink? Asking for a friend.

[Nighthawke]

Collapsed wells, pipes, or caved-in mines for rescue work where normal robots could not navigate or wedge into crevices. A really hardened unit could explore or drill into geysers or volcanic regions to make new discoveries. Make your augers out of nickle-based alloys like Iconel and put explosives into the head to blast your way forward.