Japan has kept its autonomous space camera mostly under wraps. We didn’t get a good look at it until this week, when the country’s space agency decided to reveal footage and still images from the spherical camera in actual space #todaymagic
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency or JAXA made headlines at the end of June for submitting a proposal to send a man to the Moon by 2030. But that’s not the only bold project they’re working on. The JEM Internal Ball Camera (Int-Ball) is a 3D-printed camera they developed to send to the International Space Station this summer. Finally, the spherical camera reached the ISS on June 4, 2017. One month later, the first images captured by the cute bot appeared online.
Int-Ball can move autonomously in space and due to its shape, it can capture images from any angle. By sending the media in real time to ground teams, it helps researchers stay up-to-date with the latest developments. Plus, the ISS crew also benefits from the data captured, leaving members of the crew free of the ordeal of taking those images themselves.
The 3D-printed cam is equipped with actuators, electromagnetic brakes and rotational and acceleration sensors to navigate space without leaving chaos in its wake. It doesn’t hurt that it’s adorable, too.
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