NASA Developing Tractor Beam Technology

Conceptual image of an asteroid being moved by a laser tractor beam. (Credits: NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center Conceptual Lab).

The video below illustrates three tractor beam technologies  being researched by NASA, which may be used to collect particles for study. Laser-based particle trapping has been successful in the laboratory and could provide sampling options for robotic rovers or deep space probes.

Video courtesy of Space.com.

 

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