Click on the image for the movie
Engineers from NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Alliance Spacesystems
are testing the range of motion of the Mars Science Laboratory rover’s
robotic arm joints. The instruments are not mounted on the arm’s turret
yet, but special weights have been placed on it for testing. This
super-limb must lift 34 kilograms (almost 75 pounds) of instruments to
reach out and test martian rocks and soil, which may hold clues about
whether Mars could have supported life. Longer than most people are tall,
the arm also provides heavy-duty support for the sampling drill. The drill
requires a lot of “muscle” to hold it still on the rock. But, the arm
isn’t all brawn—it must delicately deposit the precious drill
samples inside the rover for further testing.
About the Video
In the one-minute video clip, two engineers from NASA Jet Propulsion
Laboratory and Alliance Spacesystems are working in a white room with the
Mars Science Laboratory rover’s robotic arm. They are dressed in white
“bunny suits,” and are covered from head to toe wearing white face masks
to protect the equipment. The video is sped up to show the arm moving in
various positions: at the rover arm “wrist,” “elbow,” and “shoulder.” The
whole arm also pivots in a half circle as the engineers move around the
arm.