Robonaut 2, the first robot that will tweet from space

Robonaut 2, or R2, has been built in order to do dangerous tasks or carry out repetitive tasks that had to be performed by astronauts. R2 can move its arms and hands like a human and can use the many objects that humans and astronauts use, around the space station. This way, it can work and carry out its work at the space station without any redesigning. R2 has already made a Twitter account as @AstroRobonaut , and already has its first Twitter update saying : " Hello world! My name is Robonaut 2 - R2 for short. Follow my adventures here as I prepare for space!" However,R2 will not compose its tweets on its own. A scientist from the ground will write the other 140 character updates on its behalf. Astronauts are worried if their job are in danger of being replaced by a robot, but R2 was built to be a companion to humans, not replace them. It will join the International Space Station's crew next month.

This is related to science concepts because of the building of a prototype that will go off in space. In a way, it's an experiment to see how R2 will work in space in order to understand and find ways to make better Robonauts that will perform better in space. Though it does not compose its own messages and tweets, it gives us insight to the sci-fi we've been seeing, and it's a start to giving an outlook of our future.

It is important to us because it is the very first robot that will go into space, that alone is already fascinating to us. The fact that it can also do the more dangerous tasks that astronauts had to risk doing, is good for finding out more of space, that humans can't yet see. If R2 is successful, it will show NASA scientists how to operate a humanoid robot, and possibly lead to even more robonauts.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/7924227/Robonaut-2-the-first-ever-robot-astronaut-will-tweet-from-space.html