'Hedgehog' Robots Hop, Tumble in Microgravity

[Rick]

'Hedgehog' Robots Hop, Tumble in Microgravity

Hopping, tumbling and flipping over are not typical maneuvers you would expect from a spacecraft exploring other worlds. Traditional Mars rovers, for example, roll around on wheels, and they can't operate upside-down. But on a small body, such as an asteroid or a comet, the low-gravity conditions and rough surfaces make traditional driving all the more hazardous.

Enter Hedgehog: a new concept for a robot that is specifically designed to overcome the challenges of traversing small bodies.

More: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=4712