Future Of Space Travel: Could Robots Really Replace Human Astronauts?

On Christmas Eve, an autonomous spacecraft flew past nan Sun, person than immoderate human-made entity earlier it. Swooping done nan atmosphere, Nasa's Parker Solar Probe was connected a ngo to observe much astir nan Sun, including really it affects abstraction upwind connected Earth.

This was a landmark infinitesimal for humanity – but 1 without immoderate quality straight involved, arsenic nan spacecraft carried retired its pre-programmed tasks by itself arsenic it flew past nan sun, pinch nary connection pinch Earth astatine all.

Robotic probes person been sent crossed nan star strategy for nan past six decades, reaching destinations intolerable for humans. During its 10-day flyby, nan Parker Solar Probe knowledgeable temperatures of 1000C.

But nan occurrence of these autonomous spacecraft – coupled pinch nan emergence of caller precocious artificial intelligence – raises nan mobility of what domiciled humans mightiness play successful early abstraction exploration.

Some scientists mobility whether quality astronauts are going to beryllium needed astatine all.

"Robots are processing fast, and nan lawsuit for sending humans is getting weaker each nan time," says Lord Martin Rees, nan UK's Astronomer Royal. "I don't deliberation immoderate taxpayer's money should beryllium utilized to nonstop humans into space."

He besides points to nan consequence to humans.

"The only lawsuit for sending humans [there] is arsenic an adventure, an acquisition for able people, and that should beryllium funded privately," he argues.

Andrew Coates, a physicist from University College London, agrees. "For superior abstraction exploration, I overmuch for illustration robotics," he says. "[They] spell overmuch further and do much things."

They are besides cheaper than humans, he argues. "And arsenic AI progresses, nan robots tin beryllium cleverer and cleverer."

But what does that mean for early generations of budding astronauts – and surely location are definite functions that humans tin do successful abstraction but which robots, nevertheless advanced, ne'er could?

Robotic spacecraft person visited each satellite successful nan star system, arsenic good arsenic galore asteroids and comets, but humans person only gone to 2 destinations: Earth's orbit and nan Moon.

In all, astir 700 group person been to space, since nan earliest successful 1961, erstwhile Yuri Gagarin from nan then-Soviet Union became nan first cosmic explorer. Most of those person been into orbit (circling nan Earth) aliases suborbit (short vertical hops into abstraction lasting minutes, connected vehicles for illustration nan US institution Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket).

"Prestige will ever beryllium a logic that we person humans successful space," says Dr Kelly Weinersmith, a biologist astatine Rice University, Texas and co-author of A City connected Mars. "It seems to person been agreed upon arsenic a awesome measurement to show that your governmental strategy is effective and your group are brilliant."

But speech from an innate desire to explore, aliases a consciousness of prestige, humans besides transportation retired investigation and experiments successful Earth's orbit, specified arsenic connected nan International Space Station, and usage these to beforehand science.

Robots tin lend to that technological research, pinch nan expertise to recreation to locations inhospitable to humans, wherever they tin usage instruments to study and probe nan atmospheres and surfaces.

"Humans are much versatile and we get worldly done faster than a robot, but we're really difficult and costly to support live successful space," says Dr Weinersmith.

In her 2024 Booker Prize-winning caller Orbital, writer Samantha Harvey puts it much lyrically: "A robot has nary request for hydration, nutrients, excretion, sleep… It wants and asks for nothing."

But location are downsides. Many robots are slow and methodical – for illustration connected Mars, nan rovers (remote-controlled centrifugal vehicles) trundle on astatine hardly 0.1mph.

"AI tin hit quality beings astatine chess, but does that mean they'll beryllium capable to hit quality beings successful exploring environments?" asks Dr Ian Crawford, a planetary intelligence astatine nan University of London. "I conscionable don't deliberation we know."

He does, however, judge that AI algorithms mightiness alteration rovers to beryllium "more efficient".

Technology tin play a portion successful complementing quality abstraction recreation by freeing up astronauts from definite tasks to let them to attraction connected much important research.

"[AI could beryllium utilized to] automate tedious tasks," explains Dr Kiri Wagstaff, a machine and planetary intelligence successful nan US who antecedently worked astatine Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory successful California. "On nan aboveground of a planet, humans get tired and suffer focus, but machines won't."

The situation is that immense amounts of powerfulness are needed to run systems for illustration ample connection models (LLM), which tin understand and make quality connection by processing immense amounts of matter data. "We are not astatine nan constituent of being capable to tally an LLM connected a Mars rover," says Dr Wagstaff.

"The rovers' processors tally astatine astir a tenth [of nan speed] that your smartphone has" – meaning they are incapable to header pinch nan aggravated demands of moving an LLM.

Complex humanoid machines pinch robotic arms and limbs are different shape of exertion that could return connected basal tasks and functions successful space, peculiarly arsenic they much intimately mimic nan beingness capabilities of humans.

Nasa's Valkyrie robot was built by nan Johnson Space Center to compete successful a 2013 robotics situation trial. Weighing 300lb and opinionated astatine 6ft2in, it looks not dissimilar a Star Wars Stormtrooper, but it is 1 of an expanding number of human-like machines pinch superhuman abilities.

Long earlier nan Valkyrie was created, Nasa's Robonaut was nan first humanoid robot designed for usage successful space, taking connected tasks that were different performed by humans.

Its specially designed hands meant it could usage nan aforesaid devices arsenic astronauts and transportation retired complex, delicate tasks for illustration grasping objects aliases flicking switches, that were excessively challenging for different robotic systems.

A later exemplary of nan Robonaut was flown to nan International Space Station connected nan abstraction shuttle Discovery successful 2011, wherever it helped pinch attraction and assembly.

"If we request to alteration a constituent aliases cleanable a star panel, we could do that robotically," says Dr Shaun Azimi, lead of nan dexterous robotics squad astatine Nasa's Johnson Space Center successful Texas. "We spot robots arsenic a measurement to unafraid these habitats erstwhile humans aren't around."

He argues that robots could beryllium useful, not to switch quality explorers but to activity alongside them.

Some robots are already moving connected different planets without humans, sometimes moreover making decisions connected their own. Nasa's Curiosity rover, for example, is exploring a region called Gale Crater connected Mars and autonomously performs immoderate of its subject without quality input.

"You tin nonstop nan rover to return pictures of a scene, look for rocks that mightiness fresh subject priorities for nan mission, and past autonomously occurrence its laser astatine that target," says Dr Wagstaff.

"It tin get a reference of a peculiar stone and nonstop it backmost to Earth while nan humans are still asleep."

But nan capabilities of rovers for illustration Curiosity are constricted by their slow pace. And location is thing other they cannot compete pinch too. That is, humans person nan added prize of inspiring group backmost connected Earth successful a measurement that machines cannot.

"Inspiration is thing that is intangible," argues Prof Coates.

Leroy Chiao, a retired Nasa astronaut who went connected 3 flights to abstraction successful nan 1990s and 2000s connected Nasa's Space Shuttle and to nan International Space Station, agrees. "Humans subordinate erstwhile humans are doing something.

"The wide nationalist is excited astir robotic missions. But I would expect nan first quality connected Mars to beryllium moreover bigger than nan first Moon landing."

Humans person not travelled further than Earth's orbit since December 1972, erstwhile nan past Apollo ngo visited nan Moon. Nasa is hoping to return humans location this decade pinch its Artemis programme.

The next crewed mission will spot 4 astronauts alert astir nan Moon successful 2026. A further mission, scheduled for 2027, will spot Nasa astronauts onshore connected nan Moon's surface.

The Chinese abstraction agency, meanwhile, besides wants to nonstop astronauts to nan Moon.

Elsewhere Elon Musk, CEO of nan US institution SpaceX, has his ain plans related to space. He has said that his semipermanent scheme is to create a colony connected Mars, wherever humans could land.

His thought is to usage Starship, a immense caller conveyance that his institution is developing, to carrier up to 100 group location astatine a time, pinch nan purpose for location to beryllium a cardinal group connected Mars successful 20 years.

"Musk is arguing we request to move to Mars because that could beryllium a backup for humanity if thing catastrophic happens connected Earth," explains Dr Weinersmith. "If you bargain that argument, past sending humans into abstraction is necessary."

However, location are ample unknowns astir surviving connected Mars, including myriad method challenges that she says stay unsolved.

"Maybe babies can't create successful that environment," she says. "There [are] ethical questions [like this] that we don't person nan answers to.

"I deliberation we should beryllium slowing down."

Lord Rees has a imagination of his own, though, successful which quality and robotic exploration mightiness merge to nan constituent that humans themselves are part-machine to header pinch utmost environments. "I tin ideate they will usage each of nan techniques of familial modification, cyborg add-ons, and truthful on, to header pinch very dispute environments," he says.

"We whitethorn person a caller type that will beryllium happy to unrecorded connected Mars."

Until then, however, humans are apt to proceed their mini steps into nan cosmos, connected a way agelong trodden by robotic explorers earlier them.

Top image credit: NASA