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A humanoid robot entered one of the planet's harshest endurance races on Sunday, November 8, only to find that the Antarctic cold had other plans.
Qestr, the machine in question, lined up alongside approximately 25 human runners at the Antarctic Ice Ultra, held near Ultima Camp in Antarctica.
Temperatures at the event dropped to roughly -24 degrees Celsius, and organisers had fitted the robot with a thermal jacket to give its internal components some protection against the brutal conditions.
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The precaution was not enough. Qestr covered approximately three kilometres before its battery gave out entirely, forcing an early exit while its human competitors pressed on across the snow and ice.
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The failure pointed to a fundamental vulnerability in battery-powered machines operating in extreme environments.
Lithium-ion batteries rely on chemical reactions to generate electrical energy, and low temperatures slow those reactions considerably, reducing the power available to the machine.
For a humanoid robot running across uneven snow and ice, the demands are even greater: the system…
