Robonaut, the first out-of-this-world humanoid, is finally getting its space legs. <\/p>\n
For three years, Robonaut has had to manage from the waist up. This new pair of legs means the experimental robot now stuck on a pedestal is going mobile at the International Space Station. <\/p>\n
\"Legs are going to really kind of open up the robot's horizons,\" said Robert Ambrose from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. <\/p>\n
It's the next big step in NASA's quest to develop robotic helpers for astronauts. With legs, the 8-foot Robonaut will be able to climb throughout the 260-mile-high outpost, performing mundane cleaning chores and fetching things for the human crew. <\/p>\n
The robot's gangly, contortionist-bending legs are packed aboard a SpaceX supply ship that launched Friday, more than a month late. It was the private company's fourth shipment to the space station for NASA and is due to arrive Easter Sunday morning. <\/p>\n
Robonaut 2 R2 for short has been counting down the days. <\/p>\n
\"Legs are on the way!\" read a message Friday on its Twitter account, @AstroRobonaut. (OK, so it's actually a Johnson Space Center spokesman who's doing the tweeting.) <\/p>\n
Space Exploration Technologies Corp.'s unmanned capsule, Dragon, holds about 2 tons of space station supplies and experiments, Robonaut's legs included. <\/p>\n
Until a battery backpack arrives on another supply ship later this year, the multimillion-dollar robot will need a power extension cord to stretch its legs, limiting its testing area to the U.S. side of the space station. Testing should start in a few months. <\/p>\n
Each leg 4 feet, 8 inches long has seven joints. Instead of feet, there are grippers, each with a light, camera and sensor for building 3-D maps. <\/p>\n
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