Researchers at the Technical University of Dresden have developed a laser-based drilling system aimed at boring through icy surfaces on extraterrestrial bodies like comets and Mars polar caps, offering a promising alternative to traditional cryobots.

While current tests have only drilled about 25 centimeters into ice, these results demonstrate the potential of laser drilling as a viable method for exploring icy worlds, though further research is needed to scale the technology for practical space missions.

To become fully operational, the laser drilling technology must be improved to extend borehole depth beyond 25 centimeters, enhance borehole stability, and address issues such as dust coating the laser mirrors.

Laser drilling offers advantages over conventional methods by being more compact, requiring less power, and eliminating the need for physical contact with the ice, which makes it more efficient and suitable for space exploration.

Traditional cryobots demand significant power—often in the kilowatt range—posing challenges for space missions due to limited power supplies and environmental factors like ice sublimation in vacuum conditions.

These conventional systems face hurdles such as high power needs, the necessity for long and heavy probes, and environmental issues like sublimation of ice into vapor, complicating drilling efforts.

The laser system creates boreholes approximately 6.15mm wide, which are sufficient for scientific probes but may require future modifications to address pressure buildup and dust contamination from expelled debris.

Although narrow, the boreholes are adequate for scientific instruments; however, issues like pressure buildup and mirror contamination from dust need to be tackled for larger-scale applications.

The laser employs a 1550nm infrared wavelength, which is strongly absorbed by ice, enabling efficient melting with relatively low power, making it well-suited for space missions.

Experimental results show that the laser can drill through various types of ice—including clear, granular, and dusty ice—at speeds between 1 and 3.1 meters per hour using just 10 to 20 watts of power.

Tests conducted in vacuum chambers confirmed the laser’s ability to drill through different ice types at impressive speeds, with the fastest reaching 3.1 meters per hour at only 10W of power.