No, this isn’t an April Fool’s prank. Engineers at the
Virginia Tech College of Engineering are really at work developing a robot that
mimics the swimming ability of jellyfish. You can see an 80
kg prototype, dubbed Cyro, being tested by Virginia Tech students below.
Why emulate a jellyfish? Jellyfish expend remarkably little
energy for propulsion. A robot using similar methods of locomotion would be
able to travel great distances without recharging. Thus, they could be sent on
long reconnaissance or environmental monitoring missions. For example, the
robots could be used to map the ocean floor or monitor water quality. Of
course, they are being funded by the US
Naval Undersea Warfare Center, so that probably does not rule out military or
surveillance usage. But don’t worry, the researchers, led by Shashank Priya,
are years away from having a fully functional model.
By the way, here’s the creature that inspired the engineers:
Cyanea capillata, or lion’s mane jellyfish. It's the largest known jellyfish, with a bell over two meters across and tentacles that can reach 37 meters. The
name ‘Cryo’ is a combination of ‘Cyanea’ and ‘robot’.
Credit: Dan Hershman
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