Touch Tomorrow: Gordon Library and Space Exploration!: Space News from WPI

President Laurie Leshin was interviewed by NECN about the successful landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on Mars. As a former NASA administrator, Leshin discussed the importance of this mission for the future of space exploration.

Mike Gennert, professor of robotics engineering, offered his thoughts on the impact of NASA’s Perseverance rover landing on Mars. “Perseverance picked its own landing spot as it got near the surface,” said Gennert, “so it was able to avoid rocks and other obstacles as it landed.” In the TV segment, Gennert added that it has “much more autonomous ability” than other rovers.

President Laurie Leshin was quoted in this Bloomberg Businessweek article. Looking back, then-President Bill Clinton’s decision to explore Mars “cemented NASA’s commitment to search-for-life research and made it appealing in a whole new way,” said Leshin, who the article noted is also a co-investigator on CAESAR (comet astrobiology exploration sample return).

Mike Gennert, professor of robotics engineering; Carlo Pinciroli, assistant professor of robotics engineering; and Ashay Aswale, a PhD student in robotics engineering, were featured in a TV segment describing their participation in the NASA-sponsored Space Robotics Challenge. About a dozen undergraduate and graduate students have made measurable contributions in the competition.

Worcester News Tonight covered WPI's celebration and presentation of the 50th anniversary of NASA sending men to the moon, which included James L. Green, NASA chief scientist, and Steven M. Rothstein, executive director of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. President Laurie Leshin moderated the discussion, which covered the historical perspective of the United States’ participation in the Space Race against the Soviet Union, how Apollo 11’s legacy still lives on 50 years later, and other topics. (Clip starts at 4:04 mark)

WBZ radio posted a story and aired a two-minute segment about research being done by Alexander Wyglinski, WPI professor of electrical engineering and robotics engineering, on AI in space communications.