For the past decade, one of the University of Edinburgh’s most unusual residents has stood 1.8m in height and 125kg in weight, named “Valkyrie” after the female spirits of Norse mythology.
The humanoid robot developed by NASA is now bidding farewell to the robotics labs of the Bayes Centre as it prepares its return to the Johnson Space Center in Texas, where it was first built.
Since arriving in 2016, Valkyrie has played a key role in robotics research at the University of Edinburgh, helping scientists explore how humanoid machines might support astronauts in hazardous environments.
The project contributes to NASA’s long-term vision of deploying robots to Mars, ahead of human missions in the 2030s, performing tasks such as site preparation and equipment maintenance on the Red Planet.
When Valkyrie arrived in Scotland, it could walk on two legs and perform basic tasks such as grasping objects.
Over the years, researchers at the University have used machine learning to expand its abilities, improving its dexterity and sensor-based awareness.
The work has been carried out on a remarkably rare machine; only three prototypes of Valkyrie exist worldwide, with the Edinburgh-based robot being the only one outside the United States.
Reflecting on Valkyrie’s decade at Edinburgh recalls the excitement surrounding its arrival in 2016.
Professor Sethu Vijayakumar asserted that the team was “looking forward to… pushing the state of the art in humanoid robotics.”
Now, ten years later, he looks back on how the project “contributed to the exciting wave of data-driven humanoid robot research that is now taken for granted.”
He continued: “Valkyrie was indeed a trendsetter.”
“jsc2010e089924” by NASARobonaut is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
