Exploring Extreme Terrain with Space Robots 

Dr. Patrick McGarey is a Robotics Technologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. Patrick received his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Toronto, where he was a visiting Fulbright Scholar. After graduating from Mesa Community College Patrick attended the ASU School of Earth and Space Exploration (SESE). His work now focuses on the development of new systems and autonomy functions for the exploration of extreme environments throughout the solar system. Specifically, Patrick is helping to develop a cliff-descending, tethered climbing rover named Axel for the exploration of lunar pits/caves and seasonal dark patches on steep Martian cliffs. This talk will cover his path from an MCC astronomy course to JPL, and highlights a selection of the interesting projects he has worked on along the way.