Indian students win NASA Human Exploration rover challenge

Two Indian student groups from Punjab and Tamil Nadu have won the NASA 2022 Human Exploration Rover Challenge.

The challenge, which was announced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on April 29 during a virtual awards ceremony, drew 91 teams from 58 institutions and 33 high schools.

The competition required US and international student teams to design, develop, and test a human-powered rover on a track that mimicked the topography found on rocky worlds throughout the solar system.

While negotiating the course, the teams also completed mission tasks such as sample retrievals and spectrographic analyses.

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

"Ensuring team safety was a major factor in developing the design of their own obstacles. We are excited about the virtual competition and the opportunity it provided our teams," Ms Brooks-Davenport said.

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The STEM Engagement Award in the High School division went to Punjab's Decent Children Model Presidency School. 

According to the statement, the team from Vellore Institute of Technology in Tamil Nadu was named the winner of the Social Media Award in the College/University section.

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