Asteroid Mining Corp. reveals SCAR-E robot

Despite its name, the Asteroid Mining Corp. is not solely focused on asteroid mining but rather considers itself a robotics company with aspirations in the space resources market. Mitch Hunter-Scullion, the company’s CEO and founder, acknowledges that the space resources industry is not yet fully mature. In the short term, the London-based startup plans to offer services with a six-legged, 20-kilogram robot named Space Capable Asteroid Robotic-Explorer (SCAR-E), which was unveiled at the Space Economy Summit.

The robot, designed with six legs, will initially be aimed at the industrial inspection market, particularly in areas where four-legged robots would struggle. SCAR-E’s design allows it to scale walls and inspect ship hulls, and its components will be well-protected for future applications in space exploration, including lunar crater exploration and asteroid prospecting. Hunter-Scullion highlighted the limitations of wheeled rovers in navigating steep terrains, like lunar craters, and suggested SCAR-E could be more effective in such conditions.