Key Takeaway
Inspired by diving birds, roboticists built the lightweight machines to move from water to air. The design may one day lead to robots that can monitor and sample the coastal ocean.
Published July 9, 2026 · Category: News
Overview

Inspired by diving birds, roboticists built the lightweight machines to move from water to air. The design may one day lead to robots that can monitor and sample the coastal ocean.
Details
(Image credit: Raphael Zufferey)
Source
Originally published at www.npr.org.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is "A new kind of robot swims the seas and soars the skies" about?+
Inspired by diving birds, roboticists built the lightweight machines to move from water to air. The design may one day lead to robots that can monitor and sample the coastal ocean.
Who reported this story?+
This story was reported by NPR News.