Mini NASA Robot Takes a SWIM November 25, 2024
Pasadena, Calif. – NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has successfully tested a new mini robot that can swim through water. The robot, called SWIM (for Submersible Water Investigation and Mapping), is designed to explore the oceans of Europa, a moon of Jupiter that is thought to have a subsurface ocean that could potentially harbor life.
SWIM is about the size of a shoebox and weighs about 2 pounds. It is powered by a small battery and can swim for up to 6 hours at a time. The robot is equipped with a camera, a sonar system, and a variety of sensors that can measure the temperature, salinity, and pH of the water.
In the recent test, SWIM was deployed in a tank of water at JPL. The robot swam through the water, taking pictures and collecting data. The data collected by SWIM will help scientists to learn more about the conditions in Europa’s ocean and to determine whether it is a suitable environment for life.
“SWIM is a very promising new technology that could help us to explore the oceans of Europa and other water-rich worlds in our solar system,” said JPL scientist Kevin Hand, who is the principal investigator for the SWIM project. “We are excited to see what SWIM can discover in the future.”
The SWIM project is funded by NASA’s Planetary Science Division. JPL is managed by Caltech for NASA.
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