Dr. Florian Kehl is a space scientist at the University of Zurich and a Lecturer at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences.
He has previously worked at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California for nearly seven years and now continues to work with JPL and the European Space Agency ESA. Florian Kehl’s research focuses on inventing, designing, and developing fully automated astrobiology instruments for the search for extraterrestrial life and for potential resources on future planetary missions to the Moon, Mars, and the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn.
What can business learn from space research? Robotics – digitalization & simulation of future events.
Florian Kehl’s passion for space exploration started in his early childhood when he gave presentations about Mars rovers in elementary school. He has been able to participate in several simulated Mars missions in the Atacama Desert in Chile. During these missions, his team tested remotely controlled instruments on a rover. In addition, Florian Kehl has also evaluated underwater robots equipped with sampling and sensing platforms in the Arctic during a field trip. To do so, he and his team drove several kilometers over the open sea ice with their snowmobiles each morning. They then released their robotic explorers while armed locals protected them from roaming polar bears.
Florian Kehl lecture topics
- Ocean Worlds: Why the ice moons of Jupiter and Saturn have become the main focus in the search for extraterrestrial life.
All life, as we know it, originated in water and requires water to survive. Today, we know that Mars once had oceans, and the icy moons of the outer planets hold more water than all the Earth’s oceans combined. For this reason, these so-called “Ocean Worlds” have become the main focus in the search for life beyond Earth. In collaboration with NASA, Florian Kehl is developing scientific instruments to detect the building blocks of life on these celestial bodies. In his captivating and visually appealing presentation, he describes how the scientific community plans to explore these icy worlds in the coming decades, how they search for traces of extraterrestrial life, and why he tests his prototypes in the arid Atacama Desert in Chile and the eternal ice of Alaska.
- Journey to the Red Planet: Unveiling Martian Secrets through Robotic Explorations
Mars has captivated human imagination for centuries, and recent advancements in robotic technology have brought us closer than ever to unraveling its mysteries. This presentation delves into the groundbreaking field of robotic exploration on Mars, focusing on the ongoing search for extraterrestrial life. Through a fleet of rovers and cutting-edge life detection instruments, we embark on a thrilling expedition to explore the Red Planet’s past and present habitability. Join us as we uncover the latest discoveries, unveil the challenges faced by these intrepid explorers, and discuss the implications for our understanding of life beyond Earth. Get ready for an enthralling journey into the unknown as we unlock the secrets of Mars and pave the way for future human exploration of our neighboring world.
- Back to the Moon and Space Race 2.0
Humankind’s return to the moon is imminent. This time, however, to stay. In order to enable a permanent presence on the moon, the sustainable use of lunar resources is required. These mineral resources can include, for example, ice for drinking water, breathing air and fuel, or minerals as raw materials for building materials.
In his presentations, Florian Kehl tells what the next steps of the return to the moon by space agencies like NASA and ESA will look like and how he and his Swiss team will look for these lunar resources with the help of four-legged robots equipped with a wealth of scientific instruments are directly involved.
Upon request, Florian Kehl will give specific presentations on related topics.