Wait till you see what's on the horizon if you think Martian
rovers and helicopters are impressive.
NASA has showcased a slew of cutting-edge technology that
might be used on future journeys into space.
The projects are the most recent additions to the Innovative
Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program, which sponsors early-stage research to
determine their viability.
The new cohort joins a slew of existing advances in the
program.
Here are some of the most fascinating concepts.
Transforming asteroids into massive spaceships
A scalable method of exploring the solar system has been
proposed by Project RAMA: turning whole asteroids into massive autonomous
spacecraft.
The team intends to convert asteroid components into
programmable automata using robotic techniques.
The goal is to reduce the cost of terrestrial launches by
fabricating the technology in orbit.
A shapeshifting robot
Shapeshifting is usually associated with science fiction,
but NASA believes it may be used in space.
The agency has invested in a flying amphibious robot that
can transform into various equipment.
Shapeshifter is a system made up of smaller components that
combine to form robotic balls, flying arrays, and torpedo-like swimmers.
The vehicle would go from Titan's rocky cliffs to its deep
seafloors, according to the concept.
A football-field size starshade in space
A gigantic parasol in space that conceals the glare from
stars may be a beneficial aid for astronomers, according to NASA.
A moving telescope's location and velocity would be matched
by the 100-meter starshade. It might then create a dark shadow over the
interfering star while allowing the planets' light to shine through.
The concept reminds me of Mr. Burns' big parasol to boost
energy consumption, but the developers claim it's just a powerful planetary
telescope.
Smart spacesuits with stretchable self-healing skin
Spacesuit problems have been well-documented at NASA. The
existing crop is outdated, inefficient, and unprepared for future missions.
The SmartSuit is an attempt to modernize these ensembles.
Soft robotics, elastic self-healing skin, and integrated sensors gather and
show data to the wearer are all included in the spacesuit.
The kit was created with human expeditions to Mars in mind.
A paper-thin space junk cleaner
The accumulation of junk in space is posing a serious threat.
There are around 100 million bits of alien debris with a diameter of at least
one millimeter. Even little paint specks can cause damage to spacecraft
traveling at such high speeds.
The Brane Craft is a flimsy effort at cleaning up the mess.
The gadget wraps itself around orbital trash and then lowers it into Earth's
atmosphere, where it burns up.
The craft is about half the thickness of a human hair and
has the appearance of a sheet of paper. The inventors equate it to a
space-based autonomous spot cleaner.
Making Martian air breathable
If Elon Musk's ambition of populating Mars comes true, he'll (ideally) want to make the Martian atmosphere habitable.
A portable oxygen generator, according to Ivan Ermanoski, a
research professor at Arizona State University, might assist.
To create oxygen from the Martian atmosphere, the device
employs a technique known as thermal swing sorption/desorption (TSSD).
According to Ermanoski, it utilizes 10 times less energy than conventional
approaches.
The innovation might pave the way for people to breathe on
Mars.
Industrializing space with optical mining
The last suggestion on our list uses a method known as
optical mining.
The project converts asteroid minerals into rocket
propellants using intense sunlight. This would thus provide spaceships with
fuel that was both economical and readily available.
NASA believes the device will eventually aid in the
industrialization of space.
These inventions may never see the light of day, yet even one of them has the potential to change the universe as we know it.