Dante Returns To The Inferno In Antarctica

This year, if all goes according to plan, two explorers will climb Mt. Erebus, an active volcano in Antarctica. One will descend into the crater to measure the temperature of the sizzling gases spewing from the lava lake. This information will help scientists understand the role of volcanoes in destroying the ozone layer.

This might well be a Mission Impossible--except that the explorers are robots developed by Carnegie Mellon University with NASA backing. The endeavor will depend on teamwork between the two machines: A crawling transporter named Virgil will carry its companion, Dante, to the summit, then act as a base station as the eight-legged rappeller descends into the crater. A laser scanner will let the machines "see" the terrain they're passing through.