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By NASA
5 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
A prototype of a robot designed to explore subsurface oceans of icy moons is reflected in the water’s surface during a pool test at Caltech in September. Conducted by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the testing showed the feasibility of a mission concept for a swarm of mini swimming robots.NASA/JPL-Caltech In a competition swimming pool, engineers tested prototypes for a futuristic mission concept: a swarm of underwater robots that could look for signs of life on ocean worlds.
When NASA’s Europa Clipper reaches its destination in 2030, the spacecraft will prepare to aim an array of powerful science instruments toward Jupiter’s moon Europa during 49 flybys, looking for signs that the ocean beneath the moon’s icy crust could sustain life. While the spacecraft, which launched Oct. 14, carries the most advanced science hardware NASA has ever sent to the outer solar system, teams are already developing the next generation of robotic concepts that could potentially plunge into the watery depths of Europa and other ocean worlds, taking the science even further.
This is where an ocean-exploration mission concept called SWIM comes in. Short for Sensing With Independent Micro-swimmers, the project envisions a swarm of dozens of self-propelled, cellphone-size swimming robots that, once delivered to a subsurface ocean by an ice-melting cryobot, would zoom off, looking for chemical and temperature signals that could indicate life.
Dive into underwater robotics testing with NASA’s futuristic SWIM (Sensing With Independent Micro-swimmers) concept for a swarm of miniature robots to explore subsurface oceans on icy worlds, and see a JPL team testing a prototype at a pool at Caltech in Pasadena, California, in September 2024. NASA/JPL-Caltech “People might ask, why is NASA developing an underwater robot for space exploration? It’s because there are places we want to go in the solar system to look for life, and we think life needs water. So we need robots that can explore those environments — autonomously, hundreds of millions of miles from home,” said Ethan Schaler, principal investigator for SWIM at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.
Under development at JPL, a series of prototypes for the SWIM concept recently braved the waters of a 25-yard (23-meter) competition swimming pool at Caltech in Pasadena for testing. The results were encouraging.
SWIM Practice
The SWIM team’s latest iteration is a 3D-printed plastic prototype that relies on low-cost, commercially made motors and electronics. Pushed along by two propellers, with four flaps for steering, the prototype demonstrated controlled maneuvering, the ability to stay on and correct its course, and a back-and-forth “lawnmower” exploration pattern. It managed all of this autonomously, without the team’s direct intervention. The robot even spelled out “J-P-L.”
Just in case the robot needed rescuing, it was attached to a fishing line, and an engineer toting a fishing rod trotted alongside the pool during each test. Nearby, a colleague reviewed the robot’s actions and sensor data on a laptop. The team completed more than 20 rounds of testing various prototypes at the pool and in a pair of tanks at JPL.
“It’s awesome to build a robot from scratch and see it successfully operate in a relevant environment,” Schaler said. “Underwater robots in general are very hard, and this is just the first in a series of designs we’d have to work through to prepare for a trip to an ocean world. But it’s proof that we can build these robots with the necessary capabilities and begin to understand what challenges they would face on a subsurface mission.”
Swarm Science
A model of the final envisioned SWIM robot, right, sits beside a capsule holding an ocean-composition sensor. The sensor was tested on an Alaskan glacier in July 2023 through a JPL-led project called ORCAA (Ocean Worlds Reconnaissance and Characterization of Astrobiological Analogs). The wedge-shaped prototype used in most of the pool tests was about 16.5 inches (42 centimeters) long, weighing 5 pounds (2.3 kilograms). As conceived for spaceflight, the robots would have dimensions about three times smaller — tiny compared to existing remotely operated and autonomous underwater scientific vehicles. The palm-size swimmers would feature miniaturized, purpose-built parts and employ a novel wireless underwater acoustic communication system for transmitting data and triangulating their positions.
Digital versions of these little robots got their own test, not in a pool but in a computer simulation. In an environment with the same pressure and gravity they would likely encounter on Europa, a virtual swarm of 5-inch-long (12-centimeter-long) robots repeatedly went looking for potential signs of life. The computer simulations helped determine the limits of the robots’ abilities to collect science data in an unknown environment, and they led to the development of algorithms that would enable the swarm to explore more efficiently.
The simulations also helped the team better understand how to maximize science return while accounting for tradeoffs between battery life (up to two hours), the volume of water the swimmers could explore (about 3 million cubic feet, or 86,000 cubic meters), and the number of robots in a single swarm (a dozen, sent in four to five waves).
In addition, a team of collaborators at Georgia Tech in Atlanta fabricated and tested an ocean composition sensor that would enable each robot to simultaneously measure temperature, pressure, acidity or alkalinity, conductivity, and chemical makeup. Just a few millimeters square, the chip is the first to combine all those sensors in one tiny package.
Of course, such an advanced concept would require several more years of work, among other things, to be ready for a possible future flight mission to an icy moon. In the meantime, Schaler imagines SWIM robots potentially being further developed to do science work right here at home: supporting oceanographic research or taking critical measurements underneath polar ice.
More About SWIM
Caltech manages JPL for NASA. JPL’s SWIM project was supported by Phase I and II funding from NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program under the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. The program nurtures visionary ideas for space exploration and aerospace by funding early-stage studies to evaluate technologies that could transform future NASA missions. Researchers across U.S. government, industry, and academia can submit proposals.
How the SWIM concept was developed Learn about underwater robots for Antarctic climate science See NASA’s network of ready-to-roll mini-Moon rovers News Media Contact
Melissa Pamer
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-314-4928
melissa.pamer@jpl.nasa.gov
2024-162
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Last Updated Nov 20, 2024 Related Terms
Europa Jet Propulsion Laboratory NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Program Ocean Worlds Robotics Space Technology Mission Directorate Technology Explore More
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By NASA
5 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA provides a variety of pathways for those outside the agency to contribute to authentic and meaningful research. Whether you’re a student pursuing a degree in STEM (science, technology, engineering, or mathematics), an educator looking for new ways to engage your classroom, or a citizen scientist enthusiastic about sharing your observations, there’s a wide array of opportunities to get involved in NASA research.
Citizen scientists around the world participate in environmental observation and measurement efforts through GLOBE.NASA Everybody
People from all around the world can make contributions to NASA research through citizen science projects and other opportunities available to the public.
Share your observations and take measurements in your part of the world through GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment), an international science and education initiative that engages students, teachers, and the public in collecting and analyzing environmental data. Do you have a relevant idea for human health science research that could be performed on the future Gateway lunar space station? Follow these steps to share your idea for consideration. The Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing program through NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate invites citizen scientists to develop innovations in recycling material waste on deep space missions, develop aids/devices for navigating on the lunar surface during future Artemis missions, and more. Do you have the “right stuff” to participate in a simulated deep space mission? NASA’s HERA (the Human Exploration Research Analog) is seeking healthy subjects to participate in 45-day simulations to study the physiological and psychological effects of isolation and confinement on humans to help prepare for future missions to the Moon and Mars. Visit the NASA Citizen Science webpage for more opportunities to discover the secrets of the universe, search for life elsewhere, and improve life on Earth and in space. This collage features the winning designs in the 2024 Dream with Us Design Challenge, which asks students to dream of innovations for the future of aviation.NASA Middle and High School Students
Students can gain valuable experience while making a difference in the future of aeronautics and exploration.
Rising high school juniors and seniors are eligible to apply for the four-week Gene Lab for High School Students training program sponsored by NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley, California. The program focuses on collecting and analyzing complex biological data such as genetic codes, and computational biology. Through the annual TechRise Student Challenge offered by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, U.S. students in grades 6 to 12 form teams and design an experiment to fly on a suborbital flight platform such as a high-altitude balloon. Interested in aviation? The Dream With Us Design Challenge through NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate invites students in grades 6 to 12 to envision new innovations that will improve the safety, sustainability, and accessibility of aviation systems and technology. Through NASA internships, U.S. students ages 16 and up can boost their research experience and contribute to NASA’s work with the guidance of an agency mentor. This collage features the winning designs in the 2024 Dream with Us Design Challenge, which asks students to dream of innovations for the future of aviation.NASA Undergraduate and Graduate Students
NASA offers a variety of research opportunities for college students preparing to launch their own exciting careers in STEM.
NASA’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) grants competitive awards to enable college and university students within specific U.S. jurisdictions to participate in cutting-edge research projects that address NASA’s challenges and needs. The National Space Grant College and Fellowship Project (Space Grant), is a national network of colleges and universities comprising a total of 52 consortia across the U.S. These consortia fund several research opportunities for students attending member colleges and universities. Look up your state’s Space Grant consortium website to discover available opportunities. NASA internships are available in a wide range of opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students, enabling meaningful contributions to NASA’s missions as well as authentic experience as a part of the agency’s world-class workforce. Through the University Student Research Challenge, students are invited to propose their ideas describing innovative new approaches to tackling one of six major research areas as outlined by NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. Students can take part in valuable studies of the ever-changing Earth system through NASA’s Earth Science Division’s Early Career Research (ECR) program. ECR includes the eight-week Student Airborne Research Program, the Climate Change Research Initiative, and more. College students at Minority Serving Institutions can contribute to the agency’s exploration goals through many opportunities offered by NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP). Educators of grades K-8 take part in a workshop hosted by NASA’s Next Gen STEM.NASA Educators
NASA provides opportunities for educators to participate in authentic aerospace research, as well as to engage their students in research in the classroom.
Space Grant offers a variety of opportunities for educators, from curriculum enhancement and faculty development to grants enabling teachers to bring NASA research into the classroom. Look up your state’s Space Grant consortium website to discover available opportunities. NASA welcomes interns with professional teaching experience to help foster the education and curiosity of students who will shape the future workforce. Visit NASA Internships to learn more and find current opportunities. Through NASA’s Climate Change Research Initiative, part of the agency’s Earth Science Division’s Early Career Research Program, high school STEM educators can join a research team led by NASA scientists to focus on a research area related to climate change. There’s More to Explore
Explore available NASA STEM learning experiences, such as internship roles, student competitions, or engagements with NASA researchers, through NASA’s STEM Gateway platform. Visit NASA’s Learning Resources webpage for the latest news and resources from the agency’s Office of STEM Engagement.
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By NASA
6 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
The puzzling surface of Jupiter’s icy moon Europa looms large in this reprocessed color view made from images taken by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft in the late 1990s. The images were assembled into a realistic color view of the surface that approximates how Europa would appear to the human eye. NASA/JPL-Caltech/SETI Institute With a spacecraft launching soon, the mission will try to answer the question of whether there are ingredients suitable for life in the ocean below Europa’s icy crust.
Deep down, in an ocean beneath its ice shell, Jupiter’s moon Europa might be temperate and nutrient-rich, an ideal environment for some form of life — what scientists would call “habitable.” NASA’s Europa Clipper mission aims to find out.
NASA now is targeting launch no earlier than Monday, Oct. 14, on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Europa Clipper’s elongated, looping orbit around Jupiter will minimize the spacecraft’s exposure to intense radiation while allowing it to dive in for close passes by Europa. Using a formidable array of instruments for each of the mission’s 49 flybys, scientists will be able to “see” how thick the moon’s icy shell is and gain a deeper understanding of the vast ocean beneath. They’ll inventory material on the surface that might have come up from below, search for the fingerprints of organic compounds that form life’s building blocks, and sample any gases ejected from the moon for evidence of habitability.
Mission scientists will analyze the results, probing beneath the moon’s frozen shell for signs of a water world capable of supporting life.
This artist’s concept (not to scale) depicts what Europa’s internal structure could look like: an outer shell of ice, perhaps with plumes of material venting from beneath the surface; a deep, global layer of liquid water; and a rocky interior, potentially with hydrothermal vents on the seafloor.NASA/JPL-Caltech “It’s important to us to paint a picture of what that alien ocean is like — the kind of chemistry or even biochemistry that could be happening there,” said Morgan Cable, an astrobiologist and member of the Europa Clipper science team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, which manages the mission.
Ice Investigation
Central to that work is hunting for the types of salts, ices, and organic material that make up the key ingredients of a habitable world. That’s where an imager called MISE (Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa) comes in. Operating in the infrared, the spacecraft’s MISE divides reflected light into various wavelengths to identify the corresponding atoms and molecules.
The mission will also try to locate potential hot spots near Europa’s surface, where plumes could bring deep ocean material closer to the surface, using an instrument called E-THEMIS (Europa Thermal Emission Imaging System), which also operates in the infrared.
Europa Clipper Press Kit Capturing sharply detailed pictures of Europa’s surface with both a narrow and a wide-image camera is the task of the EIS (Europa Imaging System). “The EIS imagers will give us incredibly high-resolution images to understand how Europa’s surface evolved and is continuing to change,” Cable said.
Gases and Grains
NASA’s Cassini mission spotted a giant plume of water vapor erupting from multiple jets near the south pole of Saturn’s ice-covered moon Enceladus. Europa may also emit misty plumes of water, pulled from its ocean or reservoirs in its shell. Europa Clipper’s instrument called Europa-UVS (Europa Ultraviolet Spectrograph) will search for plumes and can study any material that might be venting into space.
Whether or not Europa has plumes, the spacecraft carries two instruments to analyze the small amount of gas and dust particles ejected from the moon’s surface by impacts with micrometeorites and high-energy particles: MASPEX (MAss SPectrometer for Planetary EXploration/Europa) and SUDA (SUrface Dust Analyzer) will capture the tiny pieces of material ejected from the surface, turning them into charged particles to reveal their composition.
“The spacecraft will study gas and grains coming off Europa by sticking out its tongue and tasting those grains, breathing in those gases,” said Cable.
Inside and Out
The mission will look at Europa’s external and internal structure in various ways, too, because both have far-reaching implications for the moon’s habitability.
To gain insights into the ice shell’s thickness and the ocean’s existence, along with its depth and salinity, the mission will measure the moon’s induced magnetic field with the ECM (Europa Clipper Magnetometer) and combine that data with measurements of electrical currents from charged particles flowing around Europa — data provided by PIMS (Plasma Instrument for Magnetic Sounding).
In addition, scientists will look for details on everything from the presence of the ocean to the structure and topography of the ice using REASON (Radar for Europa Assessment and Sounding to Near-surface), which will peer up to 18 miles (29 kilometers) into the shell — itself a potentially habitable environment. Measuring the changes that Europa’s gravity causes in radio signals should help nail down ice thickness and ocean depth.
“Non-icy materials on the surface could get moved into deep interior pockets of briny water within the icy shell,” said Steve Vance, an astrobiologist and geophysicist who also is a member of the Europa Clipper science team at JPL. “Some might be large enough to be considered lakes, or at least ponds.”
Using the data gathered to inform extensive computer modeling of Europa’s interior structure also could reveal the ocean’s composition and allow estimates of its temperature profile, Vance said.
Whatever conditions are discovered, the findings will open a new chapter in the search for life beyond Earth. “It’s almost certain Europa Clipper will raise as many questions or more than it answers — a whole different class than the ones we’ve been thinking of for the last 25 years,” Vance said.
More About Europa Clipper
Europa Clipper’s three main science objectives are to determine the thickness of the moon’s icy shell and its interactions with the ocean below, to investigate its composition, and to characterize its geology. The mission’s detailed exploration of Europa will help scientists better understand the astrobiological potential for habitable worlds beyond our planet.
To learn more about the science instruments aboard Europa Clipper and the institutions provide them, visit:
https://europa.nasa.gov/spacecraft/instruments
Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. APL designed the main spacecraft body in collaboration with JPL and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The Planetary Missions Program Office at Marshall executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission.
NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at Kennedy, manages the launch service for the Europa Clipper spacecraft, which will launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy.
Find more information about Europa here:
https://europa.nasa.gov
8 Things to Know About Europa Clipper Europa Clipper Teachable Moment NASA’s Europa Clipper Gets Its Giant Solar Arrays Europa Clipper Launch Bingo News Media Contacts
Gretchen McCartney
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-6215
gretchen.p.mccartney@jpl.nasa.gov
Karen Fox / Molly Wasser
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov
Written by Pat Brennan
2024-138
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Last Updated Oct 12, 2024 Related Terms
Europa Clipper Astrobiology Europa Jet Propulsion Laboratory Jupiter Jupiter Moons Explore More
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