The ESA wants its operations on other planets to have
greater mobility and manoeuvrability. SINTEF researchers are looking into
whether snake robots could be the answer.
So far, NASA has landed four rovers on Mars. These are
solar-powered robots with six wheels and robotic arms that can take soil
samples and operate cameras. Sojourner landed in 1997, Spirit and Opportunity
in 2003, while the more advanced Curiosity was landed last summer.