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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Students from Universidad Católica Boliviana “San Pablo” compete during NASA’s 2024 Human Exploration Rover Challenge. The 2025 competition takes place Friday and Saturday, April 11-12, 2025, at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s Aviation Challenge course in Huntsville, Alabama. NASA NASA’s annual Human Exploration Rover Challenge returns Friday, April 11, and Saturday, April 12, with student teams competing at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s Aviation Challenge course near the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
Media are invited to watch as hundreds of students from around the world attempt to navigate a complex obstacle course by piloting a vehicle of their own design and production. Media interested in attending or setting up interviews should contact Taylor Goodwin in the Marshall Office of Communications at 938-210-2891 no later than 2 p.m. Thursday, April 10.
In addition to the traditional human-powered rover division, this year’s competition expands the challenge to include a remote-control division. The 2025 HERC Handbook includes guidelines for the new remote-control division and updates for the human-powered division.
Participating teams represent 35 colleges and universities, 38 high schools, and two middle schools from 20 states, Puerto Rico, and 16 other nations.
The event is free and open to the public, with rover excursions from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. CDT each day, or until the last rover completes the obstacle course.
Following the competition, NASA will host an in-person awards ceremony Saturday, April 12, at 5:30 p.m. inside the Space Camp Operations Center at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. NASA and industry sponsors will present multiple awards highlighting team successes throughout the past eight-months-long engineering design project, including awards for best rover design, best pit crew, best social media presence, and many other accomplishments.
About the Challenge
Recognized as NASA’s leading international student challenge, the Human Exploration Rover Challenge aims to put competitors in the mindset of NASA’s Artemis campaign. Teams pitch an engineering design for a lunar rover which simulates astronauts exploring the lunar surface while overcoming various obstacles. Eligible teams compete to be among the top three finishers in their divisions, and to win multiple awards, including best vehicle design, best rookie team, and more.
The annual challenge draws hundreds of students from around the world and reflects the goals of NASA’s Artemis campaign, which will establish the first long-term presence on the Moon and pave the way for eventual missions to Mars.
The event was launched in 1994 as the NASA Great Moonbuggy Race – a collegiate competition to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing. It expanded in 1996 to include high school teams, evolving again in 2014 into the NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge. Since its inception, more than 15,000 students have participated – with many former students now working in the aerospace industry, including with NASA.
The Human Exploration Rover Challenge is managed by NASA Marshall’s Southeast Regional Office of STEM Engagement and is one of eight Artemis Student Challenges. NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement uses challenges and competitions to further the agency’s goal of encouraging students to pursue degrees and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
To learn more about the challenge, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/roverchallenge/
Taylor Goodwin
256-544-0034
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama
taylor.goodwin@nasa.gov
Facebook logo @RoverChallenge@NASAMarshallCenter @RoverChallenge@NASA_Marshall Instagram logo @NASA_Marshall Share
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Last Updated Apr 04, 2025 EditorBeth RidgewayLocationMarshall Space Flight Center Related Terms
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By NASA
On April 8, 2025, Bangladesh became the 54th nation to sign the accords. The commitments of the Artemis Accords and efforts by the signatories to advance implementation of these principles support the safe and sustainable exploration of space.NASA Following a signing ceremony Tuesday in Bangladesh’s capital city of Dhaka, NASA congratulates Bangladesh as the 54th nation to commit to the safe and responsible exploration of space that benefits humanity.
“We are thrilled by Bangladesh’s signature of the Accords,” said NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro. “Bangladesh affirms its role in shaping the future of space exploration. This is about ensuring that our journey to the Moon – and beyond – is peaceful, sustainable, and transparent. We look forward to working together, to learning from one another, and to seeing how Bangladesh’s incredible talent and vision contribute to humanity’s next great chapter in space.”
Ashraf Uddin, the secretary of defense for Bangladesh,signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of the country. Charge d’Affaires Tracey Jacobson for the U.S. Embassy in Dhaka, Bangladesh, participated in the event, and Petro contributed remarks in a pre-recorded video message.
“Bangladesh’s commitment to the Artemis Accords will enhance the country’s engagement with NASA and the international community,” said Bangladesh’s Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus. “By signing the accords, Bangladesh builds upon an important foundation for the open, responsible and peaceful exploration of space.”
In 2020, the United States, led by NASA and the U.S. Department of State, and seven other initial signatory nations established the Artemis Accords, a first-ever set of practical guidelines for nations to increase safety of operations and reduce risk and uncertainty in their civil exploration activities. That group of signatories has grown to more than 50 countries today.
The Artemis Accords are grounded in the Outer Space Treaty and other agreements, including the Registration Convention and the Rescue and Return Agreement, as well as best practices for responsible behavior that NASA and its partners have supported, including the public release of scientific data.
Learn more about the Artemis Accords at:
https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-accords
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Amber Jacobson / Jennifer Dooren
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
amber.c.jacobson@nasa.gov / jennifer.m.dooren@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Apr 08, 2025 EditorJennifer M. DoorenLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Office of International and Interagency Relations (OIIR) Artemis Accords View the full article
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By NASA
A Soyuz rocket launches to the International Space Station with Expedition 73 crew members: NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritskiy, onboard, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky) NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, arrived at the International Space Station on Tuesday, bringing the number of residents to 10 for the next two weeks.
The Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft carrying Kim, Ryzhikov, and Zubritsky docked to the Prichal module at 4:57 a.m. EDT, following a three-hour, two-orbit journey to the space station. They launched at 1:47 a.m. (10:47 a.m. Baikonur time) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
When hatches open at approximately 7:20 a.m., the trio will join the Expedition 72 crew, including NASA astronauts Nichole Ayers, Anne McClain, and Don Pettit, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Kirill Peskov, Ivan Vagner, and Alexey Ovchinin.
NASA’s live coverage of hatch opening will begin at 7 a.m. on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms.
Expedition 73 will begin on Saturday, April 19, following the departure of Pettit, Ovchinin, and Vagner, as they conclude a seven-month science mission aboard the orbiting laboratory.
Watch the ceremonial change of command at 2:40 p.m. on Friday, April 18, as Ovchinin transfers the distinction to Onishi, live on NASA+.
Throughout his eight-month stay aboard the orbital outpost, Kim will conduct scientific research in technology development, Earth science, biology, human research, and more. This is the first flight for Kim and Zubritsky, and the third for Ryzhikov.
Learn more about space station activities at:
https://www.nasa.gov/station
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Joshua Finch
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Apr 08, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Humans in Space International Space Station (ISS) View the full article
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