🚀 A rover that swims in sand to explore Mars

Valles Marineris, the gigantic canyon on Mars, poses a major difficulty for classic rovers due to its rugged terrain. Yet a small lizard from the Sahara might just hold the key to this problem.

The VaMEx (Valles Marineris Explorer) project, led by the German Space Agency at DLR, aims to design a swarm of autonomous robots capable of exploring this difficult region. The area is riddled with sand dunes and steep slopes, complicating vehicle mobility. To remedy this, researchers are studying different systems, and one approach stands out in particular.


It was by observing the sandfish skink (Scincus scincus), a lizard capable of swimming under the sand to hunt or flee, that researchers at the University of Würzburg had an idea. This animal moves through the sand by undulating, creating longitudinal and lateral forces. Marco Schmidt's team designed wheels imitating this movement, leaving sinusoidal tracks in the sand, resembling the reptile's trails.

Tests conducted in collaboration with DLR and the University of Bremen showed good stability on sand. However, improvements are needed, especially for mixed terrains. The researchers note that the technique is promising but still improvable, as Marco Schmidt confides.


The team plans to refine the design to improve performance on different soil types. Control strategies taking sliding and sinking into account are also being studied. The goal is to make the rover more stable and adaptable in granular environments, to cross vast Martian dune fields.

For Pascal Lee, a researcher at the SETI Institute and the Mars Institute, this bio-inspired approach is both innovative and intriguing. According to him, having reliable mobility solutions for dunes is essential for the future exploration of Mars, whether robotic or manned. The VaMEx project thus lays the groundwork for a new generation of more agile rovers.