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A robot that cleans cowsheds. 95 Master Robotics students have been working on this project for the past few weeks. On 13 June, they presented their robots to lecturers and client Lely, manufacturer of automated systems for dairy farmers. The students developed the control software for the robot. It had to avoid cows and other obstacles and navigate itself to places where there is manure.

Reef-lined islands are often low-lying and thus extremely vulnerable to coastal flooding. The vanishing of coral reefs worldwide gives the waves free rein. Besides efforts to protect the reefs, ways to artificially restore coral reefs are being devised. Can the proposed reef restoration be an effective mitigation measure against flooding?

The geothermal energy well at TU Delft campus will soon start heating various buildings on campus and in the city of Delft. But it provides insufficient heat in winter, and excessive heat in summer. Adding underground seasonal storage allows surplus summer heat to be put to good use in winter. Martin Bloemendal and his team develop the means to make integration of such an underground seasonal buffer possible at a large scale.

Under the name PHARA, a collaborative team of scientists and engineers aim to develop a pioneering phased array weather radar – first of its kind in Europe and one of the first worldwide. This joint effort TU Delft, TU Eindhoven, TNO, Robin Radar, Astron, KNMI, and the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, officially kicked off with a summit held on May 30.

Research by Aarthi Sundaram of TU Delft shows that social networks and trust between people have a significant influence on whether or not people install solar panels on their roofs. This research reveals that affordability is not the main reason for choosing solar panels, despite it being commonly assumed. The results have been published in the journal Energy Research and Social Science. The article suggests leveraging the influence of social networks to create fairer solar energy programmes for all income groups.