Robot Is Changing the Game of Antarctic Science (Wired)

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[[{“type”:“media”,“view_mode”:“media_large”,“fid”:null,“attributes”:{“class”:“media-image alignright size-full wp-image-31910”,“typeof”:“foaf:Image”,“style”:“”,“width”:“100”,“height”:“100”,“title”:“”,“alt”:“WIRED”}}]]Detecting crevasses in ice sheets is one of the most time-consuming, costly, and potentially dangerous components of Antarctic research, but robots designed by a team led by Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering Professor Laura Ray presage a new era in the relationship between scientists and robotic field assistants, Wired reports.

The latest version of the Yeti autonomous vehicle, which Ray and her team spent years developing, can generate enormous cost savings while gathering data to an extent that has eluded human crevasse detectors.

“It’s tedious and tiring, and there are few people that do it well,” Ray tells Wired.

Read the full story, published 2/28/13 in Wired.

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