No humans have traveled to the Moon since the end of NASA's Apollo program in 1972, but the Artemis program will soon bring humans to the lunar surface, with the first manned landing currently scheduled for 2026.
The Artemis astronauts will try to do things humans have never done before, such as building a habitable base that would allow long-term visits and exploring the moon's cratered south pole.
Innovators around the world are working to find solutions that help them achieve their goals and stay safe. This includes researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), who are developing wearable robotic limbs to help astronauts stand up after a fall.
The so-called “SuperLimbs” are designed to extend from the backpack containing the astronauts' life support system. When the wearer falls, a pair of limbs can extend to help him stand, saving energy for other tasks.
The partial gravity of the Moon makes it difficult to maintain balance. According to a study conducted by the University of Michigan, the 12 astronauts who walked on the moon during the Apollo missions fell 27 times and were involved in 21 other accidents.
Astronaut Charlie Duke visited the moon in 1972 during the Apollo 16 mission. This footage shows him trying to get up after falling. NASA
When astronaut Charlie Duke fell to the moon's surface while conducting lunar soil tests in 1972, it took three attempts to get up. The study found that falls occurred more often when astronauts, like Duke, were collecting samples or using tools, tasks that Artemis astronauts were more likely to perform.
Superlimbs were developed about a decade ago by MIT professor Harry Asada and have already been tested by aircraft manufacturers and shipbuilders.
Now it is adapted for astronauts.
Eric Ballesteros, a doctoral student at MIT, spent the summer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he worked on superpowers as a NASA grantee.
Ballesteros says the system still needs a little work, but he hopes to be ready for a demo by January — when it helps a mannequin stand up from a prone position.
He told CNN he believes a human demo will be ready within a year or two, but the team has a lot of work to do in terms of safety first.
“We can't just stick with tape and hold things together; We have to be very precise and very careful.” He said.
There may be other challenges. The harsh environment of space — temperature and pollutants such as dust and electromagnetic radiation — can mean that getting technology approved for use can Off-ground is expensive and time-consuming.
But he added that the pace of innovation in space technology is amazing. “It took centuries or decades for science fiction to become science fact,” he said. “It's been years now.”
The SuperLimbs project is under development at MIT. Kalind Carpenter/Preston Rogers/Mirza Semnani
Extremities can help reduce the energy needed to get up, said Ana Diaz Artiles, an assistant professor of aerospace engineering at Texas A&M University who was not involved in the research. The trade-off is that the limbs add more weight and require more energy to move.
He added that lunar dust is “extremely toxic” and could be harmful to an astronaut rolling on the lunar surface while struggling to get up, a problem the arms could help solve. Robotic limbs “Very cool and very helpful” He said.
