Space-bound robot dog (LASSIE) stretches its legs at White Sands National Park – SFGate.com
A researcher on the LASSIE team gives the robot a kiss. Justin Durner
National Parks
Scientist’s best friend: Space-bound robot dog stretches its legs at White Sands National Park
LASSIE could one day support astronauts on the moon and Mars
By Adrianna Nine, Southwest Contributing Parks Editor,Sep 7, 2025
https://everlit.audio/embeds/artl_xPk5YCBO53K?eut=38fc9e7d0d634e9a57daa6e8206569ee&ste=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuc2ZnYXRlLmNvbS9uYXRpb25hbC1wYXJrcy9hcnRpY2xlL3JvYm90LWRvZy10cmFpbmVkLWF0LXdoaXRlLXNhbmRzLW5hdGlvbmFsLXBhcmstMjEwMjk1MjgucGhw&ui_cover_art=false&ui_title_intro=Listen%20Now:&ui_title_icon=headphones
Before a “robot dog” can fetch data on the moon or Mars, it must learn to do so on Earth. And right now, that’s exactly what’s happening in New Mexico’s White Sands National Park with a contraption called LASSIE.
LASSIE (short for Legged Autonomous Surface Science in Analogue Environments) is a quadrupedal robot built by engineers at Temple University, Georgia Tech, Texas A&M, the University of Pennsylvania, and Oregon State University, where roboticist Cristina Wilson is an assistant professor.
With funding from USC and NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Wilson and her colleagues designed LASSIE to test just how useful so-called robot dogs — which are already used in certain law enforcement, military, and search and rescue situations — could be in scientific contexts, like environmental research or space exploration. After all, legs have distinct advantages over the wheels used by lunar and Mars rovers.
“Legs can step over things. Wheels have to roll over them,” Wilson told SFGATE.
Before a robot like LASSIE can make it to space, however, it has to prove itself here on Earth. And when it came time for Wilson’s team to find a proper Mars analog on their home planet, they knew just the place: White Sands National Park.
Researchers work with LASSIE at White Sands National Park in New Mexico. Justin Durner
With its sparkling sand dunes composed primarily of ultra-fine gypsum, White Sands offers a fairly accessible testing ground for a robot that might someday roam the powdery surface of Mars. The sand there also varies in depth, giving LASSIE the opportunity to test both its locomotive capabilities and its scientific instruments, which help LASSIE learn about its environment by testing the ground beneath its feet.
“Imagine you’re at the beach, and you’re pushing your finger into the sand or stepping onto it,” Wilson said. “What would that feel like, and how would it feel if the sand is wet and stiff versus dry and loose? A robot can make the same assessments.”
Since beginning work on LASSIE in 2023, Wilson and her colleagues have brought the robot to White Sands on two occasions, with the latest visit taking place in August 2025. Summer isn’t an easy time to work outside in the Southwest, and the team had to begin its work at sunrise, concluding by late morning to avoid triple-digit temperatures that could have meant trouble for LASSIE’s power supply and the robot dog’s human companions.
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