By Ryan F. Mandelbaum | Gizmodo
I can’t beelieve it! Maybe one day there will be bee-like robots buzzing around the surface of Mars.
NASA has selected 25 proposals to receive funding as part of its Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program. Each award amounts to around $125,000. But as a website that’s always been a fan of small ideas, we quite liked Marsbee, a “Swarm of Flapping Wing Flyers for Enhanced Mars Exploration.”
“With their ability to fly through the ultra-low-density atmosphere of Mars, Marsbees will enable researchers to gather previously unattainable data about the pressure, temperature, and chemical composition of Mars,” project lead Chang-kwon Kang from The University of Alabama in Huntsville told Gizmodo. “They can also aid in collaborative terrain mapping.”
A Mars rover could serve as the home base for a swarm of these bees, according to the NASA release. They’d be low-power and specifically designed for the Red Planet’s lower-density atmosphere.
