NASA’s dexterous humanoid robots built to assist humans on the moon

( NewsNation ) — At NASA ’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, the 16-member Dexterous Robotics Team , is working on new machines to join crews on future lunar missions .

These robots, however, are not just built for repetitive tasks. Their objective is to act as a hands-on support team for the crew while on the moon.

“It’s really about the human elements — either working in environments designed for humans or working alongside humans. That’s our niche,” said Shaun Azimi, Dexterous Robotics Team lead. “We’re uniquely positioned to bring in folks who are designing the human environments.”

The team’s past work includes humanoids such as Robonaut 2 , which spent seven years working on the International Space Station, and Valkyrie , NASA’s first bipedal humanoid. These projects gave the team experience with electronics, mechanics, mobility and dexterity.

Applications for the new humanoids also extend to future missions to Mars . Ahead of a crewed mission to the Red Planet, the Dexterous Robotics Team is set to work with other agencies in giving the public a voice on technology ideas for crewed exploration.

The humanoids will work alongside the human crew as assistants on missions to “enhance a crew’s performance and productivity while reducing risk and expanding the capabilities for space exploration” NASA said, with “a focus on robots that can complete tasks humans do with their hands.”

“Our team is not trying to replace human explorers with robots but instead make human exploration safer and more sustainable by developing highly capable, reliable, and trustworthy robots to work in extreme environments,” Azimi continued.

He added, “If we can send more capable robots, we can reduce the risk and make people more effective in doing the things that people do best.”