Tiny Robots to Explore Moon

In a first-of-its-kind scientific mission, Five tiny robots made by researchers of Mexico’s National Autonomous University (UNAM) will be sent to the Moon by the end of this year. These robots will travel on the lunar surface and record important measurements. United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Rocket, which will also be the first American rocket to land on the lunar surface in the last five decades, will carry these nanobots to the moon’s surface. Gustavo Medina Tanco, a UNAM scientist who heads the Colmena project said: "This is a small mission where we'll test the concept, and afterwards we'll undertake other missions, first to the moon and then on to asteroids. No one has done this, nobody, not just in Mexico. We can make a difference in the technology and for international cooperation that can then lead to important joint ventures to study the minerals or undertake other scientific exploration." The bots are made to handle conditions present on the Moon and will collect lunar minerals that will further help in lunar mining in the coming future. Mr. Tanco takes pride after announcing that their project will go to the moon as nearly 200 students from Engineering, Physics, Maths, and Chemistry worked tirelessly to make this possible.