NASA to Auction Original Stargate Robot

Posted 30 Oct 2005 at 16:25 UTC by steve

NASA is auctioning off Hazbot III. In real life Hazbot III was a prototype emergency response robot developed at JPL. The robot can operate in and explore environments with hazardous or explosive atmospheres. It boasted impressive specs for its time, sporting cameras and other sensors, an arm, and a tethered remote control. Stargate fans will be more familiar with it as the original MALP used in the Stargate feature film which starred Kurt Russell. In Stargate, MALPs are small robots sent through the Stargate to unexplored addresses ahead of human exploration teams. In the spin-off Stargate SG-1 TV series, Hazbot III was replaced by a larger robot prop. Apparently, NASA doesn't do eBay yet. The robot will be auctioned by a meat-space auctionhouse called Skinner. If you've got $30k to spend on a used robot, you'll find it in sale 2314, Lot 757.