Test your programming skills and move the robot around the obstacles. Credit: NASA

NASA tests robots for exploration in areas called analogs. Analogs are places where the environment is similar to locations like Mars or the moon, where a robot may be used. One NASA analog is in the Arizona desert. NASA robotics experts conduct field tests in the desert to assess new ideas for rovers, spacewalks and ground support. Some of these tests are conducted by a team called Desert RATS, which stands for Desert Research And Technology Studies.

What is it like to be part of a team that designs and tests robots? Find out and test your programming skills with ROVER. Guide the robot over an analog of 12 terrain grids without consuming all of his battery power. Watch out for obstacles!

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NASA and General Motors have come together to develop the next-generation dexterous humanoid robot. Credit: NASA

In February 2011, NASA launched the first humanlike robot to space to become a permanent resident of the International Space Station. Robonaut 2, or R2, was developed jointly by NASA and General Motors under a cooperative agreement to develop a robotic assistant that can work alongside humans, whether they be astronauts in space or workers at GM manufacturing plants on Earth.

The 300-pound R2 consists of a head and a torso with two arms and two hands. R2 launched on space shuttle Discovery as part of the STS-133 mission.

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