Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Posted
Rovers compete in Space Resources Challenge

The poles of the Moon have emerged as enticing goals for future exploration, given their potential for harbouring water and other volatiles. So ESA and the European Space Resources Innovation Centre, ESRIC, challenged European and Canadian engineering teams to develop vehicles capable of prospecting resources within in these shadowy regions – then put their designs to the test in a realistic lunar analog environment. Five winning teams have now been selected from this challenge, receiving €75 000 contracts each to move their rovers forward to the next phase of the contest.

View the full article

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Similar Topics

    • By NASA
      1 min read
      Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
      ECF 2024 Quadchart Boles.pdf
      Jessica Boles
      University of California, Berkeley
      This project will develop piezoelectric-based power conversion for small power systems on the lunar surface. These piezoelectric systems can potentially offer high power density to significantly reduce size, weight, and cost. They can also offer high efficiency as well as resistance to the extreme lunar environment with its expected prolonged exposure to extreme cold and radiation. The effort will build and test prototype piezoelectric DC-to-DC power converters and DC-to-DC power supplies.
      Back to ECF 2024 Full List
      Share
      Details
      Last Updated Apr 18, 2025 EditorLoura Hall Related Terms
      Early Career Faculty (ECF) Space Technology Research Grants View the full article
    • By NASA
      To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
      NASA has announced the winners of it’s 31st Human Exploration Rover Challenge . The annual engineering competition – one of the agency’s longest standing student challenges – wrapped up on April 11 and April 12, at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. NASA NASA has announced the winning student teams in the 2025 Human Exploration Rover Challenge. This year’s competition challenged teams to design, build, and test a lunar rover powered by either human pilots or remote control. In the human-powered division, Parish Episcopal School in Dallas, Texas, earned first place in the high school division, and the Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina, captured the college and university title. In the remote-control division, Bright Foundation in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, earned first place in the middle and high school division, and the Instituto Tecnologico de Santa Domingo in the Dominican Republic, captured the college and university title.
      The annual engineering competition – one of NASA’s longest standing student challenges – wrapped up on April 11 and April 12, at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. The complete list of 2025 award winners is provided below:
      Human-Powered High School Division 
      First Place: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas Second Place: Ecambia High School, Pensacola, Florida Third Place: Centro Boliviano Americano – Santa Cruz, Bolivia Human-Powered College/University Division 
      First Place: Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina Second Place: Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Third Place: University of Alabama in Huntsville Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division
      First Place: Bright Foundation, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada Second Place: Assumption College, Brangrak, Bangkok, Thailand Third Place: Erie High School, Erie, Colorado Remote-Control College/University Division
      First Place: Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Second Place: Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina Third Place: Tecnologico de Monterey – Campus Cuernvaca, Xochitepec, Morelos, Mexico Ingenuity Award 
       Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada Phoenix Award 
      Human-Powered High School Division: International Hope School of Bangladesh, Uttara, Dhaka, Bangladesh College/University Division: Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division: Bright Foundation, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada College/University Division: Southwest Oklahoma State University, Weatherford, Oklahoma Task Challenge Award 
      Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division: Assumption College, Bangrak, Bangkok, Thailand College/University Division: Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Project Review Award 
      Human-Powered High School Division: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas College/University Division: Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division: Bright Foundation, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada College/University Division: Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Featherweight Award 
      Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina Safety Award 
      Human-Powered High School Division: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas College/University Division: University of Alabama in Huntsville Crash and Burn Award 
      Universidad de Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico (Human-Powered Division) Team Spirit Award 
      Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (Human-Powered Division) STEM Engagement Award 
      Human-Powered High School Division: Albertville Innovation School, Albertville, Alabama College/University Division: Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division: Instituto Salesiano Don Bosco, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic College/University Division: Tecnologico de Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico Social Media Award
      Human-Powered High School Division: International Hope School of Bagladesh, Uttara, Dhaka, Bangladesh College/University Division: Universidad Catolica Boliviana “San Pablo” La Paz, Bolivia Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division: ATLAS SkillTech University, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India College/University Division: Instituto Salesiano Don Bosco, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Most Improved Performance Award
      Human-Powered High School Division: Space Education Institute, Leipzig, Germany College/University Division: Purdue University Northwest, Hammond, Indiana Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division: Erie High School, Erie, Colorado College/University Division: Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina Pit Crew Award
      Human-Powered High School Division: Academy of Arts, Career, and Technology, Reno, Nevada College/University Division: Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada Artemis Educator Award
      Fabion Diaz Palacious from Universidad Catolica Boliviana “San Pablo” La Paz, Bolivia Rookie of the Year
      Deira International School, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

      More than 500 students with 75 teams from around the world participated in the  31st year of the competition. Participating teams represented 35 colleges and universities, 38 high schools, and two middle schools from 20 states, Puerto Rico, and 16 other nations. Teams were awarded points based on navigating a half-mile obstacle course, conducting mission-specific task challenges, and completing multiple safety and design reviews with NASA engineers. 
      NASA expanded the 2025 challenge to include a remote-control division, Remote-Operated Vehicular Research, and invited middle school students to participate. 
      “This student design challenge encourages the next generation of scientists and engineers to engage in the design process by providing innovative concepts and unique perspectives,” said Vemitra Alexander, who leads the challenge for NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement at Marshall. “This challenge also continues NASA’s legacy of providing valuable experiences to students who may be responsible for planning future space missions, including crewed missions to other worlds.”
      The rover challenge is one of NASA’s eight Artemis Student Challenges reflecting the goals of the Artemis campaign, which will land Americans on the Moon while establishing a long-term presence for science and exploration, preparing for future human missions to Mars. NASA uses such challenges to encourage students to pursue degrees and careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. 
      The competition is managed by NASA’s Southeast Regional Office of STEM Engagement at Marshall. Since its inception in 1994, more than 15,000 students have participated – with many former students now working at NASA, or within the aerospace industry.    
      To learn more about the Human Exploration Rover Challenge, please visit: 
      https://www.nasa.gov/roverchallenge/home/index.html
      News Media Contact
      Taylor Goodwin
      Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.
      256.544.0034
      taylor.goodwin@nasa.gov
      View the full article
    • By Amazing Space
      LIVE: Stunning Lunar Views Captured with Seestar S50 Smart Telescope 🌕✨
    • By NASA
      NASA has selected 12 student teams to develop solutions for storing and transferring the super-cold liquid propellants needed for future long-term exploration beyond Earth orbit.
      The agency’s 2025 Human Lander Challenge is designed to inspire and engage the next generation of engineers and scientists as NASA and its partners prepare to send astronauts to the Moon through the Artemis campaign in preparation for future missions to Mars. The commercial human landing systems will serve as the primary mode of transportation that will safely take astronauts and, later, large cargo from lunar orbit to the surface of the Moon and back.
      For its second year, the competition invites university students and their faculty advisors to develop innovative, “cooler” solutions for in-space cryogenic, or super cold, liquid propellant storage and transfer systems. These cryogenic fluids, like liquid hydrogen or liquid oxygen, must stay extremely cold to remain in a liquid state, and the ability to effectively store and transfer them in space will be increasingly vital for future long-duration missions. Current technology allows cryogenic liquids to be stored for a relatively short amount of time, but future missions will require these systems to function effectively over several hours, weeks, and even months.
      The 12 selected finalists have been awarded a $9,250 development stipend to further develop their concepts in preparation for the next stage of the competition.
      The 2025 Human Lander Challenge finalist teams are:
      California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, “THERMOSPRING: Thermal Exchange Reduction Mechanism using Optimized SPRING” Colorado School of Mines, “MAST: Modular Adaptive Support Technology” Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, “Electrical Capacitance to High-resolution Observation (ECHO)” Jacksonville University, “Cryogenic Complex: Cryogenic Tanks and Storage Systems – on the Moon and Cislunar Orbit” Jacksonville University, “Cryogenic Fuel Storage and Transfer: The Human Interface – Monitoring and Mitigating Risks” Massachusetts Institute of Technology, “THERMOS: Translunar Heat Rejection and Mixing for Orbital Sustainability” Old Dominion University, “Structural Tensegrity for Optimized Retention in Microgravity (STORM)” Texas A&M University, “Next-generation Cryogenic Transfer and Autonomous Refueling (NeCTAR)” The College of New Jersey, “Cryogenic Orbital Siphoning System (CROSS)” The Ohio State University, “Autonomous Magnetized Cryo-Couplers with Active Alignment Control for Propellant Transfer (AMCC-AAC) University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, “Efficient Cryogenic Low Invasive Propellant Supply Exchange (ECLIPSE)” Washington State University, “CRYPRESS Coupler for Liquid Hydrogen Transfer” Finalist teams will now work to submit a technical paper further detailing their concepts. They will present their work to a panel of NASA and industry judges at the 2025 Human Lander Competition Forum in Huntsville, Alabama, near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, in June 2025. The top three placing teams will share a total prize purse of $18,000.
      “By engaging college students in solving critical challenges in cryogenic fluid technologies and systems-level solutions, NASA fosters a collaborative environment where academic research meets practical application,” said Tiffany Russell Lockett, office manager for the Human Landing System Mission Systems Management Office at NASA Marshall. “This partnership not only accelerates cryogenics technology development but also prepares the Artemis Generation – the next generation of engineers and scientists – to drive future breakthroughs in spaceflight.”
      NASA’s Human Lander Challenge is sponsored by the agency’s Human Landing System Program within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate and managed by the National Institute of Aerospace.
      For more information on NASA’s 2025 Human Lander Challenge, including team progress, visit the challenge website.
      News Media Contact
      Corinne Beckinger 
      Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. 
      256.544.0034  
      corinne.m.beckinger@nasa.gov 
      View the full article
    • By NASA
      2 min read
      Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
      Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting.Josh Valcarcel A core component of Gateway, humanity’s first space station around the Moon, is now on American soil and one step closer to launch. In lunar orbit, Gateway will support NASA’s Artemis campaign to return humans to the Moon and chart a path of scientific discovery toward the first crewed missions to Mars.
      Gateway’s first pressurized module and one of its two foundational elements, HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost), arrived in Arizona on April 1. Fresh off a transatlantic journey from Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy, the structure will undergo final outfitting at Northrop Grumman’s integration and test facility before being integrated with Gateway’s Power and Propulsion Element at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The pair of modules will launch together on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.
      Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting.NASA/Josh Valcarcel Gateway’s HALO will provide Artemis astronauts with space to live, work, conduct scientific research, and prepare for missions to the lunar surface. It will offer command and control, data handling, energy storage, electrical power distribution, thermal regulation, and communications and tracking via Lunar Link, a high-rate lunar communication system provided by ESA (European Space Agency). The module will include docking ports for visiting vehicles such as NASA’s Orion spacecraft, lunar landers, and logistics modules. It will also support both internal and external science payloads, enabling research and technology demonstrations in the harsh deep space environment.
      Built with industry and international partners, Gateway will support sustained exploration of the Moon, serve as a platform for science and international collaboration, and act as a proving ground for the technologies and systems needed for future human missions to Mars.
      Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting.NASA/Josh Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting.NASA/Josh Valcarcel At the Thales Alenia Space facility in Turin, Italy, technicians prepare Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) for transport. The module’s primary structure, fabricated by Thales Alenia Space, will travel to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert, Arizona, for final outfitting ahead of its launch to lunar orbit. Thales Alenia Space At the Thales Alenia Space facility in Turin, Italy, technicians prepare Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) for transport. The module’s primary structure, fabricated by Thales Alenia Space, will travel to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert, Arizona, for final outfitting ahead of its launch to lunar orbit. Thales Alenia Space At the Thales Alenia Space facility in Turin, Italy, technicians prepare Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) for transport. The module’s primary structure, fabricated by Thales Alenia Space, will travel to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert, Arizona, for final outfitting ahead of its launch to lunar orbit. Thales Alenia Space Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) departs Italy en route to Arizona, where it will undergo final outfitting at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert ahead of its launch to lunar orbit. The module’s primary structure was fabricated by Thales Alenia Space in Turin. Thales Alenia Space Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) departs Italy en route to Arizona, where it will undergo final outfitting at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert ahead of its launch to lunar orbit. The module’s primary structure was fabricated by Thales Alenia Space in Turin. Thales Alenia Space Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) departs Italy en route to Arizona, where it will undergo final outfitting at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert ahead of its launch to lunar orbit. The module’s primary structure was fabricated by Thales Alenia Space in Turin. Thales Alenia Space Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting. Josh Valcarcel – NASA – JSC Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting.Josh Valcarcel – NASA – JSC Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting. Josh Valcarcel – NASA – JSC Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting. Josh Valcarcel – NASA – JSC Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) arrives in Mesa, Arizona, after traveling from Italy, where Thales Alenia Space fabricated its primary structure. Delivered by cargo aircraft to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, HALO will be transported to Northrop Grumman’s facility in Gilbert for final outfitting. Josh Valcarcel – NASA – JSC Download additional high-resolution images of HALO here.
      Learn More About Gateway Facebook logo @NASAGateway @NASA_Gateway Instagram logo @nasaartemis Share
      Details
      Last Updated Apr 04, 2025 ContactLaura RochonLocationJohnson Space Center Related Terms
      Artemis Artemis 4 Earth's Moon Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate Gateway Program Gateway Space Station Humans in Space Johnson Space Center Explore More
      2 min read NASA Prepares Gateway Lunar Space Station for Journey to Moon
      Assembly is underway for Gateway's Power and Propulsion Element, the module that will power the…
      Article 1 month ago 5 min read NASA Marks Artemis Progress With Gateway Lunar Space Station
      NASA and its international partners are making progress on Gateway – the lunar space station…
      Article 1 month ago 2 min read Advanced Modeling Enhances Gateway’s Lunar Dust Defense
      Ahead of more frequent and intense contact with dust during Artemis missions, NASA is developing…
      Article 2 months ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
      Humans In Space
      Orion Spacecraft
      Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility
      Human Landing System

      View the full article
  • Check out these Videos

×
×
  • Create New...