From sea to space, this robot is on a roll

Texas A&M researchers have revived a 20-year-old NASA concept for a spherical robot called RoboBall that can navigate terrain impossible for traditional wheeled or legged machines. The current prototypes include a 2-foot version for testing and a 6-foot model designed to carry sensors and cameras, with the smaller version recently reaching speeds of 20 mph. Graduate students are preparing beach trials in Galveston to test the robot's ability to roll from water onto sand without concern for orientation. Future applications could include lunar crater exploration or post-disaster surveying, where swarms of these robots could map dangerous areas and locate survivors without risking human lives.