Title: Robotic Solutions to Sample Handling Challenges on Ocean Worlds

Date: Thursday, June 10th, 2021

Time: 12:00-2:00 pm EDT

Location: https://bluejeans.com/250790899

Frances Bryson

Robotics Ph.D. Student

George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering

Georgia Institute of Technology

Committee

• Dr. Britney Schmidt (Advisor) – School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Dr. Chris Carr – School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Dr. E. Glenn Lightsey - School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Dr. Anirban Mazumdar – School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Dr. Karim Sabra – School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology

Abstract

Ocean worlds are widely regarded as promising locations in the solar system in the search for life. However, the liquid water oceans that are the most promising locations for potential life lie isolated beneath kilometers of ice, which makes robotics and autonomy required for missions, and introduces new challenges for robotics, especially in sample handling systems. The project will address the needs for sampling on ocean worlds by using analog Earth environments and underwater technology development platforms to explore underwater solid sampling, and by developing a liquid sampling system with ocean profiling capabilities suitable for a mission concept for a Europa melt probe. These studies will serve to investigate the challenges in sampling and the current state of the technology, concluding with the development of robotic solutions to these challenges. The objectives of this work are to: explore the needs of sampling systems for searching for life on ocean worlds, design robotic solutions to solve the identified challenges in sampling, and to develop benchtop systems to increase the technology readiness levels of these sampling systems for an ocean worlds mission context.