What's the world's most complex space robot doing up there? Last week, Dextre was imaged moving atop the Destiny Laboratory Module of the International Space Station (ISS), completing tasks prior to the deployment of Japan's Kibo pressurized science laboratory. Dextre, short for the Canadian-built Special Purpose Dextrous Manipulator, has arms three meters in length and can attach power tools as fingers. Behind Dextre is the blackness of space, while Earth looms over Dextre's head. The Kibo laboratory segment being deployed during space shuttle Discovery's trip to the ISS can be pressurized and contains racks of scientific experiment that will be used to explore many things, including how plants brace themselves against gravity, and how water might be inhibited from freezing in cells under microgravity.

Google und Virgin Groups teilen die Gründung von Virgle mit, mit dem eine permanente Siedlung auf dem Mars errichtet werden soll.

Im Moment werden die ersten Freiwilligen für den Pionierflug gesucht.

PS: Interessant ist auch der neue Roboter der ISS, der "Dextre der Großartige" genannt werden will. :)

The Canadian space program begun with the 1962 launch of its Alouette satellite.

Third country in space, the Dextre robot arm module is currently orbiting on the International Space Station. Last December, Canada launched its world-beating Radarsat-2 satellite, providing images of startling detail of the planet.

A recent editorial from the Toronto Star, accurately notes that;

In an era when prosperity depends on scientific research, innovation and a knowledge-based economy, it would be nothing less than tragic if Canada were to falter, or retreat from its decades of expertise in space and leave the future to others.

Last week according to the National Post, the proposed sale of the space division of B.C.-based MacDonald Dettwiler & Associates (MDA) to Alliant Techsystems of Minnesota, includes RADARSAT-2. Generating imagery of remarkably high definition even at night and through clouds, RADARSAT-2 is the perfect tool for tracking ships and mapping sea-ice.

With the Northwest Passage opening, losing RADARSAT-2 would be like losing our eyes.

From the CP, Marc Garneau, the first Canadian to go into space, and former head of the Canadian Space Agency, says the taxpayer-funded company MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates could compromise Canada's ability to survey its own land.

If Canada sells that ability away, it would prevent the country from controlling its own technology, and might even open the door to a foreign company to keep secrets from Canada.

The Canadian government should get on point regarding this issue. The importance of national space programs, in relation to the increasing commercial and military interests, in extra-planetary science and economy, will exponentially be critical.

It would be like giving up on car technology during the dawn of the industrial revolution. With some afterthought, Canada has done such a thing, with the CF 105 Arrow program.

Check out PUTSCH TV for a press conference with Marc Garneau on the future of the Canadian Space Program & the CBC heritage minute on the Avro Arrow story.

"ENDEAVOR"  (WITH KENNEDY CAPE and NASA):

56 (seconds)...."Dextre"

Anchored to a Canadarm2 mobile foot restraint, astronaut Rick Linnehan participates in the mission's first scheduled spacewalk. During the seven-hour spacewalk, Linnehan and Expedition 16 flight engineer Garrett Reisman prepared the Japanese logistics module-pressurized section for removal from Endeavour's payload bay and installed the tool change out mechanisms on the Canadian-built Dextre robotic system, the final element of the station's Mobile Servicing System.

Image Credit: NASA

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Spacewalking astronauts stepped outside Monday night to give the space station's new robot some eyes and a set of tools. It was the third spacewalk of shuttle Endeavour's visit to the station, each one aimed at putting together Dextre, the giant robot.

The last time astronauts floated out, Dextre got arms. This time, the robot was getting a tool belt and two cameras that will serve as eyes — interestingly, at waist level.

You can see my brother's basic schematic here.

My only advice...don't piss off the giant orbiting robot.

Kobi

Everything has run smoothly and the initial module of Kobi was opened for the first time Friday. The hatch was opened at 7:24 MDT March 15, marking the first time the space station's 15-nation program has full on-orbit participation. Kobi is in a temporary berth at the station, and will likely be moved prior to the arrival of the next portion.

Dextre

Not everything ran smoothly with Mr. Dextre's installation. A power problem prevented its initial deployment. The problem was eventually traced to a flawed cable in the pallet containing the robot during shuttle delivery. Once power from the station was introduced, the robot responded to controls. The cable ended up not being the correct type for the powering system.

Last night's work focused on attaching Dextre's two arms. Work with the arms was temporarily slowed due to stubborn bolts, but things were wrapped up by 12:57 MDT this morning. Initial tests of Dextre and it's two arms indicate a nominally operative piece of equipment, which is excellent news.

Cassini

I wrote a post a few days ago regarding Cassini's planned fly-through and testing of Encaladus' eruptive geyser. Unfortunately, a software glitch prevented instrument from determining the make-up of the geyser material during the fly-through. The good news is that cameras were operating at the critical time. They discovered that the north pole of Enceladus appears much older than the moon's south pole.

All is not lost with regard to determining the make-up of the ejecta. NASA officials said that Cassini's Wednesday flyby is the first of four close-up swings past the moon this year. A similar plume pass is slated for October 9th.

And that's just Enceladus. Cassini continues to probe the remainder of the Saturnian system.

Ansa - E' un grande apparecchio con inquietanti braccia meccaniche e gli astronauti della Nasa, scherzando, giorni fa lo paragonavano a una minacciosa creatura in stile Frankenstein. Ma Dextre, il primo robot con movimenti 'umani' sulla Stazione spaziale, si è rivelato in realtà bisognoso di aiuto e calore: un problema tecnico gli impedisce di riscaldarsi e le sue articolazioni sono in pericolo. Lo shuttle Endeavour ha portato in orbita il robot costruito dal Canada e due astronauti, nel corso di una prima passeggiata spaziale durata sette ore, lo hanno assemblato mettendo insieme nove pezzi e hanno cominciato a installarlo sulla base orbitante da un miliardo di dollari. Quando sarà a regime, dopo altre due passeggiate previste nei prossimi giorni, Dextre opererà in cima al lungo braccio meccanico di cui già dispone la stazione Iss e dovrebbe compiere operazioni all'esterno, che fino ad oggi richiedono l'intervento di astronauti.

Dextre es el nombre del robot de fabricación canadiense que fue enviado al espacio el pasado 11 de marzo con la finalidad de ayudar a los astronautas que realizan caminatas espaciales y en algún momento realizar algunas de sus labores más peligrosas. Dextre, nombre tomado de la forma en inglés de diestro y que se pronuncia como Dexter, tiene un valor de 200 millones de dólares. Está dotado de 2 brazos tele manipuladores, mide 4 metros de altura, posee 5 cámaras y 7 articulaciones en cada brazo

Los caminantes espaciales Richard Linnehan y Garrett Reisman iniciaron el ensamblaje del robot la noche del jueves, durante la primera de cinco incursiones al espacio planeadas durante la muy activa misión de 16 días del transbordador.

Vía I popsci.com

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El Robot Dextre compuesto por dos brazos fué desarrollado por la Agencia Espacial Canadiense e inicialmente desarrollado para la Estación Espacial Internacional pero luego se presento como el principal candidato para reparar el telescopio Hubble.

Una capacidad elemental del Dextre es reemplazar componentes averiados o gastados tales como baterías con una precisión es milimétrica.

El transbordador "Endeavour" ayer (11-03-2008) en órbita terrestre tras partir desde el Centro Espacial Kennedy para instalar el primero de tres segmentos de un laboratorio japonés y el robótico en la Estación Espacial Internacional (EEI).

Ver infografía interactiva.

Quite true it can reduce the space walk of astronauts, and do quite a bit of their work.  This amazingly reduces the radiation the astronauts will be exposed and not to mention the micrometeorites they may have to encounter.

In a couple of years the technology used by the robotics division of this Montreal company  will definitely available to you and me... man what are we going to do with this?

I am sure you can integrate this monster into your cars and trucks so that they get out of the ditches and back on to the road when they have just skidded off on a bad winter day. That would be interesting especially for Canada. I am looking forward to it.

Truly the future is here. Amazing isn't it?

Today marked yet another successful launch of that overly complex yet hugely useful piece of American technological sophistication the Space Shuttle. Yes, the Endeavor blasted through low cloud cover in a night launch to bring the first piece of the Japanese Space Station Module Kibo into orbit and attach it to that other piece of scientific bondoggle the ISS. Unfortunately for us, however, this is not the only thing aboard the Shuttle.

No, NASA could not leave well enough alone, and this time they got the Canadians in on it. Indeed, aboard the Shuttle is a piece of equipment so insidious that they didn't press-release it until very soon before the launch. This item is called DEXTRE, and it is a robot.

A

ROBOT

Now many people will assume that it was an inevitability that a robot would be launched into orbit, and many people would be correct. That being said, I feel that not enough is being made of the fact that the precursor to our future titanium-skinned overlords will soon be floating through space, its gleaming robot eye looking downward on our cities and weeping oily robot tears at the possibilities presented by its situation. Yes, this cybernetic monstrosity is connected to the space station. True, it is not an intelligent automaton, instead existing as a remotely operated tool of the NASA space station maintenance team.

That is not the point. Look at this thing!

"Force moment sensor?" "Power data grapple fixture?" "Latching End Effector?" "Electronics Platform?!" This thing has more acronyms than Devo has crappy songs.

Despite this things fairly innocuous purported uses, it looks like a bastard lovechild between HAL 9000 and V.I.N.C.E.N.T. from Disney's The Black Hole. Despite that, who is to say that a rogue cosmonaut could not switch out one of his arms with a giant laser, beginning a cycle of orbital doom that culminates in our ultimate enslavement by the robot army? No one, that's who.

Now there are going to be neigh-sayers out there who think that I am over-reacting. Likewise there is at least one person who is going to agree that this is going to happen, but is okay with it due to his continuous kowtowing and pandering to the forces of mechanized doom (you know who you are).

You are all in the wrong... Im just saying; when bolts of maple syrup flavored high energy plasma (it's a Canadian robot, remember?) start raining down on your heads from above and your radio starts emitting the ever-so-faint sound of synthesized laughter through the static, you will look to me for guidance and wont get any, because I will be hiding in a bunker, shaking my head in disbelief that more people didn't listen.

The Dextre manipulator (or Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator), a sophisticated dual-armed robot, is part of Canada's contribution to the International Space Station (ISS). Designed for servicing the Station, Dextre can remove and replace small components on the Station's exterior that require precise handling.

Like a mechanic in space, Dextre can pivot at the waist, and its shoulders support two identical arms with seven offset joints that allow for great freedom of movement. It is equipped with lights, video equipment, a stowage platform, and four robotic tools.

At the end of each arm is an orbital replacement unit/tool changeout mechanism, or OTCM-parallel jaws that hold a payload or tool with a vice-like grip. For fine manipulation tasks, Dextre has a unique technology: precise sensing of the forces and torque in its grip with automatic compensation to ensure the payload glides smoothly into its mounting fixture. To grab objects, each OTCM has a retractable motorized socket wrench to turn bolts and mate or detach mechanisms, as well as a camera and lights for close-up viewing. A retractable umbilical connector can provide power, data, and video connection feed-through to payloads.

The cargo bay of Shuttle Endeavour with the Canadian robot Dextre and the pressurized component of Kibo, the Japanese Experiment Module.

Dextre can accomplish tasks that require high precision and a gentle touch such as removing and replacing Station components, opening and closing covers, and deploying or retracting mechanisms. Some of the many tasks Dextre will perform include installing and removing small payloads such as batteries, power switching units, and computers, as well as manipulating, installing, and removing scientific experiments.

A typical task for Dextre would be to replace a depleted battery (100 kg) and engage all the connectors. This involves bolting and unbolting, as well as millimetre-level positioning accuracy for aligning and inserting the new battery.

Like the Canadarm2 and the Mobile Base System, Dextre can be controlled from a workstation inside the space station or by controllers on the ground in mission control centres in Houston, Texas and at Canadian Space Agency headquarters in Longueuil, Quebec. Its five cameras, including two pan/tilt cameras below its rotating torso, provide operators with multiple views of the work area.

Dextre, Canadarm2 and the Mobile Base System form a robotic system called the Mobile Servicing System (MSS). The MSS is built for the Canadian Space Agency by the Canadian company MD Robotics.

(Information and illustrations: Canadian Space Agency)

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The ships are scheduled to be launched every 18 months, relieving the needs for Russian Progress units. Interestingly, the Europeans launched the ship but will have to make it wait for its docking until Endeavour finishes its mission to the ISS.

Speaking of which, the U.S. space shuttle Endeavour is scheduled for launch tonight from Kennedy Space Center at 2:28 EDT. It is carrying the first piece of the Japanese science module, Kibo. Astronauts will also assemble a monstrous, two-armed Canadian robot and deliver a suite of on-orbit experiments during their mission, scheduled to last 16 days! More from Space.com: " Two days after Japan's first orbital room is stowed in a temporary berth at the space station, spacewalkers Linnehan, Foreman and Behnken will piece together Dextre — the Canadian Space Agency's (CSA) maintenance robot that weighs more than 3,440 pounds (1,560 kilograms).

The giant robot, often personified by the STS-123 crew as "Mr. Dextre," will have an arm span of about 30 feet (9 meters) and stand 12 feet (3.7 meters) tall. By guiding highly precise "hands" from inside the space station, astronauts can perform basic space station maintenance without having to venture into the unforgiving space environment outside."

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Update 3/11/08 12:45A MDT

Endeavour has successfully reached orbit.  Hope the rest of the mission goes as well!