Robots in the Quest of Extraterrestrial Life

Topic: Robots in the Quest of Extraterrestrial Life

“Are we alone?” 

“Is there life on other planets?”

Such questions have always intrigued humans and this quest to explore is usually limited by technological advancements. 

Robots have traditionally been deployed for various applications on Earth, however, with the current leap of technology in the form of machine learning and neural networks, robots are developed to be intelligent and autonomous, enabling them to make decisions as they operate in complex environments beyond Earth. This talk will highlight the role of robotics in the search of biosignatures on the celestial bodies of our Solar System. It will cover the basic design and functionality of such robots required to accomplish a successful science mission. 

Speaker Bio:

Shreya Santra is currently pursuing her Ph.D. at the Space Robotics Laboratory of Tohoku University, Japan. Her research focuses on swarm robotics coordination for planetary surface exploration. 

After completing her BTech in Electrical and Electronics Engineering in India, she went on to pursue her Masters in Space Studies at the International Space University, France, and Space Systems Engineering at Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology. Throughout her international experiences, Shreya has worked with interdisciplinary teams and gained knowledge in different fields of space science and technology, and their applications.