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CASE 03 / Rescue & exploration

EELS: a snake robot for passages through ice

A segmented body uses rotating screws for motion tests on ice, snow and sand.

NASA JPL · EELS2024
EELS prototype during snow tests in Southern California, February 2023.
EELS prototype during snow tests in Southern California, February 2023.Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech · JPL Image Use Policy

Watch the video

Ground-prototype tests; planetary exploration is a mission concept. · NASA/JPL-Caltech · 1080p source video

Original video sourceOfficial YouTube version
01 / STUDY

Mechanism and experiments

EELS uses rotating screws on its body for traction and propulsion. Lidar and stereo cameras map the surroundings. JPL has tested prototypes on Earth, including versions at Canada’s Athabasca Glacier.

02 / CONTEXT

Test conditions and scope

The project remains in development. Glacier tests used a sensor head in 2022 and different prototypes in 2023, including version 1.5 for subsurface autonomy. Exploration beneath Enceladus is a mission concept.

03 / SOURCE

Papers and primary sources

EELS (Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor)
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
NASA/JPL · robotics project and field-test records

Further reading

EXPERIMENT / IMAGES

Experimental images

An early EELS prototype at the Pasadena ice rink, 2022.
An early EELS prototype at the Pasadena ice rink, 2022.Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech · JPL Image Use Policy
Official concept art for exploration through passages in ice.
Official concept art for exploration through passages in ice.Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech · JPL Image Use Policy