2 Indian student groups win NASA 2022 Human Exploration Rover Challenge

Two Indian student groups have won NASA's 2022 Human Exploration Rover Challenge, which aims to identify a new generation of prospective space explorers. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration announced the challenge on April 29 during a virtual awards event, which included 91 teams from 58 institutions and 33 secondary schools.

The challenge asked US and foreign student teams to build, develop, and test a human-powered rover on a route that mimicked the topography found on rocky worlds in the solar system. While navigating the route, the crews also completed mission tasks such as sample recovery and spectrographic analysis. Teams from high schools and colleges participated in a variety of design, documentation, and presentation categories, including the safety prize, project review award, and many more.

"This year, students were challenged to build a course that would imitate obstacles as if they were competing in Huntsville," said Aundra Brooks-Davenport, activity lead for the challenge at the Marshall Space Flight Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, on Tuesday.

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"Ensuring team safety was a crucial consideration while designing their own obstacles. We are thrilled with the virtual competition and the opportunities it has afforded our teams," According to Brooks-Davenport.

NASA's Office of STEM Engagement is in charge of the competition. It employs challenges and contests to advance the agency's mission of encouraging students to pursue degrees and employment in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

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• 2022 Human Exploration Rover Challenge
• NASA
• Punjab
• Tamil Nadu
• Rover Challenge