Photos: NASA's lunar big dig
Nineteen teams and their robots compete in the Regolith Excavation Challenge, which simulates maneuvering and digging on the Moon's surface.
Hangar one
Nineteen teams and their robots set out to compete for a total of $750,000 in prizes at the annual Regolith Excavation Challenge, which took place October 17 and 18 at NASA's Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif.
The competition, which simulates the conditions of maneuvering and digging on the lunar surface, gives teams a chance to innovate and invent new methods of engineering robotics for space exploration.
moon dirt
The competition for scientific innovation in space exploration requires teams to build robots that are able to dig, transport, and deposit the faux moon dirt regolith.
Here, the Sandstorm robot from North Royalton, Ohio, gets ready to compete.
The challenge to dig
Competitors are required to use mobile robotic digging machines capable of excavating at least 330 pounds of regolith and depositing it into a container in 30 minutes or less.
This competitor from the Terra Engineering team in Gardena, Calif., took second place.
First place winner
Loading the bots
The vehicles, which are operated remotely by the teams, are required to contain their own power source and weigh no more than 176 pounds.
The Invading Huns from Palm Bay, Fla., shown here, unload their robot.
Winning teams
The winning excavator lifted 965 pounds of regolith material in the allotted time. Runners-up excavated 595 pounds and 580 pounds, respectively.
Special mention went to Team E-REX and Eric Jones of Little Rock, Ark., for transferring the most regolith, 165 pounds, in a single deposit into the official collector bin.
Here, team Innovation Island, from Southwest Harbor, Maine, moves its robot into position.
Lunar dust
The simulated moon surface in which the robots maneuvered was a 4-meter square area filled with a finely ground volcanic rock that simulated the extremely fine particles of lunar dust.
The dust is raked and compacted before each team's turn, making the dense surface comparable to the moon. A few larger rocks, scattered randomly, provide additional obstacles.
Here, Team Waldbaum waits for its turn on the simulated lunar surface.
Lunar Surface
The regolith surface, like lunar dust, is very fine--less than 30 micrometers in diameter. It's also extremely dry, and the particles want to stick together, making it very difficult to dig.
In this shot, UBC Tread Robotics from Vancouver, B.C., begins the competition.
Remote controlled
Excavation
Although this is the third year of the Regolith Excavation Challenge, it is the first time that any team has met the minimum excavating requirements to qualify for a cash prize.
Here, Terra Engineering dumps a load of regolith into the depository.
Moonraker
Cash prizes
Lightweight, sturdy, and powerful
In holding competitions like these to develop intelligent robotics, NASA hopes many talented young people will become involved and contribute to the innovations required to take space exploration to the next level.
One hope, NASA says, is to one day establish small bases and a permanent presence on the moon, and machines and inventions displayed in competitions like these are critical to the success of such missions.
Building lightweight, sturdy, and powerful robotics are technical hurdles these teams have overcome, says Greg Schmidt, deputy director of the NASA Lunar Science Institute, and one day ideas presented here might find use in future missions to the moon.