# Olympus: A Jumping Quadruped for Planetary Exploration Utilizing Reinforcement Learning for In-Flight Attitude Control

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.03574 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.03574/

## Key facts

- Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 12 of its 33 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 5 Mar 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 12 of 12)

- [Learning to Walk in Minutes Using Massively Parallel Deep Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2109.11978/) (2021)
- [NeBula: Quest for Robotic Autonomy in Challenging Environments; TEAM CoSTAR at the DARPA Subterranean Challenge](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2103.11470/) (2021)
- [Scientific Exploration of Challenging Planetary Analog Environments with a Team of Legged Robots](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.10079/) (2023)
- [Cat-like Jumping and Landing of Legged Robots in Low-gravity Using Deep Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2106.09357/) (2021)
- [Towards Energy Efficient Autonomous Exploration of Mars Lava Tube with a Martian Coaxial Quadrotor](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2211.06905/) (2022)
- [SpaceHopper: A Small-Scale Legged Robot for Exploring Low-Gravity Celestial Bodies](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.02831/) (2024)
- [Quadruped-Frog: Rapid Online Optimization of Continuous Quadruped Jumping](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.06954/) (2024)
- [Mini Cheetah, the Falling Cat: A Case Study in Machine Learning and Trajectory Optimization for Robot Acrobatics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2109.04424/) (2021)
- [Flying, Hopping Pit-Bots for Cave and Lava Tube Exploration on the Moon and Mars](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1701.07799/) (2017)
- [Designing ReachBot: System Design Process with a Case Study of a Martian Lava Tube Mission](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.11534/) (2022)
- [Design and Experimental Verification of a Jumping Legged Robot for Martian Lava Tube Exploration](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.03854/) (2023)
- [Martian Lava Tube Exploration Using Jumping Legged Robots: A Concept Study](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.14876/) (2023)

## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [Towards Quadrupedal Jumping and Walking for Dynamic Locomotion using Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.24584/) (2025)
- [Towards Low-Gravity Planetary Exploration using Reinforcement Learning for Walking, Jumping, and In-flight Attitude Control](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.24643/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Exploring planetary bodies with lower gravity, such as the moon and Mars, allows legged robots to utilize jumping as an efficient form of locomotion thus giving them a valuable advantage over traditional rovers for exploration. Motivated by this fact, this paper presents the design, simulation, and learning-based "in-flight" attitude control of Olympus, a jumping legged robot tailored to the gravity of Mars. First, the design requirements are outlined followed by detailing how simulation enabled optimizing the robot's design - from its legs to the overall configuration - towards high vertical jumping, forward jumping distance, and in-flight attitude reorientation. Subsequently, the reinforcement learning policy used to track desired in-flight attitude maneuvers is presented. Successfully crossing the sim2real gap, extensive experimental studies of attitude reorientation tests are demonstrated.