08/10/2026
As industries increasingly rely on robotics to operate in hazardous, remote and inaccessible environments, experts from fusion, nuclear, defence, maritime, space and robotics sectors gathered at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus to explore shared challenges and emerging opportunities. The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) joined organisations from industry, academia and government at the Robotics for Extreme Environments event, examining how technologies developed for some of the world’s most demanding settings can support future applications across multiple sectors, including space.
Organised by the Harwell Space Cluster, the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), the UK Beyond Earth Network (UK BEN), UK Autonomous and Connected Earth (UK ACE) and the Satellite Applications Catapult, the event brought together specialists to discuss how robotics can support the operation, maintenance and resilience of critical infrastructure in environments where direct human intervention is difficult or impossible. A central theme was the growing opportunity for technology transfer between sectors that have traditionally operated independently but increasingly face similar technical challenges.
Representing UKAEA’s centre for Remote Applications in Challenging Environments (RACE), Dan Law, Head of Operations, delivered the keynote presentation, sharing lessons learned from designing, operating and maintaining robotic systems in fusion and nuclear environments. Drawing on more than 15 years of experience in robotics, remote handling and nuclear engineering, he highlighted how challenges such as remote inspection, maintenance, infrastructure resilience and operation in inaccessible environments are now common across multiple industries. He also emphasised the value of virtual environments and digital mock ups in preparing operators and testing systems before deployment. These insights build on UKAEA’s extensive experience at the Joint European Torus (JET), including over 30,000 hours of in vessel remote operations.
UKAEA also contributed to a panel exploring Earth to Space technology transfer, examining how established terrestrial robotics capabilities could support future space infrastructure. Discussions highlighted the increasing importance of robotic systems as industries seek to operate safely and efficiently in environments where direct human intervention is difficult, costly or impossible. Simon Tate, Head of Programme Development within RACE, joined experts to discuss which technologies are most ready to enable operations beyond Earth, including in orbit servicing, in space manufacturing and tele operation.
UKAEA showcased a live demonstration of a Health Physics contamination‑monitoring tool developed through the Robotics and AI Collaboration (RAICo) for deployment on Boston Dynamics’ Spot robot.
