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Workshops

Monday, December 1, 2025
AI4OPA: AI Techniques and Frameworks for Orbital and Planetary Autonomy

Workshop URL: https://sites.google.com/view/ai4opaworkshop/home

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Organizers 

  • Matteo El Hariry, University of Luxembourg

  • Lisa Denzer, European Space Agency

  • Simon Bøgh, Aalborg University

  • Claudio Semini, IIT Genova

  • Teresa Vidal Calleja, UT Sydney

  • Amir Rahmani, NASA JPL

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Overview

The AI4OPA workshop will explore how Deep Learning (DL) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) can serve as powerful tools to enhance the autonomy of both orbital and planetary space missions. A dedicated subtopic of the workshop is the open-sourcing of space-related datasets and benchmarks that are essential for the training and evaluation of Machine Learning models.

  • The workshop welcomes contributions from, but not limited to, the following research areas:

  • Autonomous planetary navigation, mobility and locomotion

  • In orbit proximity operations (rendezvous, docking)

  • Spacecraft trajectory optimization (applications on orbital maneuvers, landing and more)

  • V&V for data-driven systems deployment (sim-to-real, standardized evaluations etc)

  • AI-based operation scheduling/planning

  • Space robotics datasets and benchmarks for AI-based algorithms

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Beyond Rigid Systems: The Case for Soft Robotics in Space Exploration

Workshop URL: https://softspacerobotics.carrd.co/

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Organizers 

  • Valentina Lo Gatto, Herriot-Watt University

  • Hari Lakshman R.B., The National Robotarium, UK

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Overview

The goal of this workshop is to bring together researchers working in the fields of soft robotics and/or space exploration to discuss the latest developments, current challenges, and future opportunities related to the adoption of soft robotic technologies in in-situ planetary missions. The workshop will focus on highlighting benefits and identifying avenues for future improvements that will lead soft robotics principles to become part of the design tools for future exploratory probes.

  • Soft/compliant robotics concepts for in-situ planetary exploration

  • Robustness and reliability analysis of soft systems in cryogenic and radiation-heavy environments

  • Modelling and simulation tools for verification/validation of soft systems for space applications

  • Integration of soft robotics within existing planetary mission architectures (sampling, manipulation, environmental sensing, mobility)

  • Studies that aim at furthering required TRL levels within main open technological gaps (materials, actuation, sensing, control)

Thursday, December 4, 2025
Dexterous Robotic Grasping in Space: Challenges and Current Research 

Workshop URL: https://sites.google.com/view/spacegrasping/home

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Organizers 

  • Nikos Mavrakis, Durham University

  • Carol Martinez, University of Luxembourg

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Overview​

The workshop will bring together experts in space robotics, grasping, and manipulation from academia, industry, and space organizations. Dexterous robotic grasping in space is not as widely adopted as on Earth applications. The goal of the workshop would be to define the challenges of grasping operations in orbital and planetary environments, set clear pathways for the development, testing, and benchmarking of space-based robotic grasping, and describe key user cases in space that can benefit from robotic grasping.

  • Grasp synthesis

  • Grasping mechanisms

  • Teleoperation for grasping

  • V&V for space grasping

  • Learning and AI for grasping

  • Vision and perception for grasping

Sustainable Space Activities through Robotic Pre-deployment and Autonomous Operations

Workshop URL: https://sites.google.com/view/spacerobotics-sustainable/home

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Organizers 

  • Hiroki Kato, JAXA

  • Seiko P. Yamaguchi, JAXA

  • Shaun Azimi, NASA

  • Neal Y. Lii, DLR

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Overview​

This workshop will address this paradigm shift, where space robotics transition from supporting roles to primary actors, pioneering, constructing, and maintaining infrastructures for future human presence. The program combines conceptual framing, invited talks from leading agencies (JAXA, NASA, DLR), academia, and industry, along with a hands-on session, to promote collaboration and resource sharing. aims to build a cross-disciplinary understanding of how robotics must evolve to support sustainable space activities.

  • Dexterity, manipulation, and autonomous assembly in microgravity and planetary environments.

  • Perception and locomotion for surface exploration under severe communication constraints.

  • Simulation and validation platforms for in-space autonomy.

  • Modularity and scalability in space robotic systems.

  • Advanced materials and manufacturing technologies for robotic infrastructure deployment.

  • In-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (ISAM).

  • Soft robotics for delicate operations in space environments.

  • Generative AI and autonomous mission planning for deep-space operations.

  • Lessons learned from on-orbit demonstrations (e.g., NASA Robonaut2 and dexterous manipulation studies, NASA iMETRO, JAXA Int-Ball2, RACS2, ICHIBAN, DLR Surface Avatar and other missions/research projects).

*Please access each workshop's website to check information such as the call for posters and submission deadlines.

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