Newly Created Yeti Helps Researchers in Polar Regions Avoid Deadly Crevasses

This Yeti isn't large, furry or related to Big Foot, but it does survive in the frigid reaches of the Arctic and Antarctic. Researchers from the National Science Foundation (NSF) have successfully deployed a self-guided robot named Yeti; the creation uses ground-penetrating radar in order to map deadly crevasses hidden beneath the ice, allowing conservationists to learn where they can safely tread.

Crevasses are giant pits in the ice which can be as wide as 30 feet and plunge downward by as much as 200 feet. They are often impossible to spot with the eye since they become covered with drifts snow that hide them from plain view. It's possible for equipment or even people to go plunging into these pits after driving or walking across the surface layer.

Before Yeti became available, researchers detected crevasses by using a vehicle. The machine would push a ground penetration radar unit across the terrian. The process was both dangerous and stressful for crews as they inched across the ice, hoping that the unit would detect any hidden threats.

Now, Yeti will make polar travel safer for the crews that supply remote scientific research stations. It was tested in several different areas, including Greenland's Inland Traverse, an over-ice supply train from Thule in the north of Greenland to NSF's Summit Station on the ice cap and in NSF's South Pole Traverse. The robot was able to traverse miles of terrain while detecting potential hazards.

The robot itself weighs about 180 pounds and is battery powered. Its four-wheel drive allows it to power over rough ground, and it can endure temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit. In order to pinpoint areas where dangerous crevasses lurk, the machine uses a GPS to plot the positions for researchers.

There is still room for improvement, though. One of the researchers involved with the project, James Lever, said in an interview with Science Codex, "Our focus with Yeti is on improving operational efficiency. But more generally, robotics has the potential to produce more sicence with more spatial and temporal coverage for less money. We're not going to replace the scientists. But what we can do is extend their reach and add to the science mission."

The details of Yeti and its operations were published in the Journal of Field Robotics.