Project Tango Will Give SPHERES More Flying Capabilities

Daniel Terdiman at CNET News (5/22, 359K) wrote how the Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (SPHERES) now at the ISS will soon be upgraded with Google’s Project Tango this year, bringing an “especially innovative commercial tool” to the experiment. Terdiman noted Terry Fong, NASA Ames Research Center, director of the Intelligent Robotics Group, said that the SPHERES have advanced enough for Project Tango, which should allow for “more accurate and trackable flying,” allowing them to take on more duties formerly left to astronauts. The public has its own chance to see what the project entails at the Solid conference running through today.