Schlagwort: Space

Publikationen, Tagungen

Wearable Social Robots in Space

The article „Wearable Social Robots in Space“ by Tamara Siegmann and Oliver Bendel was published on December 23, 2025. It is part of the volume „Social Robotics + AI: 17th International Conference, ICSR+AI 2025, Naples, Italy, September 10–12, 2025, Proceedings, Part I.“ From the abstract: „Social robots have been developed on Earth since the 1990s. This article shows that they can also provide added value in space – particularly on a manned flight to Mars. The focus in this paper is on wearable social robots, which seem to be an obvious type due to their small size and low weight. First, the environment and situation of the astronauts are described. Then, using AIBI as an example, it is shown how it fits into these conditions and requirements and what tasks it can perform. Possible further developments and improvements of a wearable social robot are also mentioned in this context. It becomes clear that a model like AIBI is well suited to accompany astronauts on a Mars flight. However, further developments and improvements in interaction and communication are desirable before application.“ The Swiss student presented the paper together with her professor on September 10, 2025, in Naples. It can be downloaded from link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-95-2379-5_33.

Fig.: Tamara Siegmann with the poster

Innovationen, Projekte

Historic Spaceflight Delayed: First Astronaut With Paraplegia Awaits Launch

According to Golem, Blue Origin’s New Shepard mission NS-37 was set to become a small but meaningful milestone for human spaceflight: ESA engineer Michaela Benthaus was expected to be the first person with paraplegia to complete a suborbital flight and cross the Kármán line. The flight was scheduled for December 18, 2025, from Blue Origin’s launch site in Texas, following the familiar New Shepard profile: a brief climb above 100 kilometers, a few minutes of weightlessness, and a parachute landing after roughly ten to twelve minutes. Benthaus, who has used a wheelchair since a 2018 mountain biking accident, had already experienced microgravity during a parabolic flight through the Astroaccess program, and she has also worked on practical considerations for accessibility in weightlessness. However, the launch did not go forward as planned. Blue Origin stood down from the NS-37 attempt after an issue was detected during pre-flight checks, and the company said it is evaluating the next launch opportunity. For now, the team hopes the crew can make the trip soon, even if the historic moment has to wait a little longer.

Fig.: Blue Origin building (Photo: N2e, CC BY-SA 4.0)