NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate is proud to announce the inaugural Lunar Regolith Excavator Student Competition May 25-28, 2010, at the Astronaut Hall of Fame Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Eligibility
Undergraduate and graduate student teams enrolled in a U.S. college or university are eligible to enter the inaugural Lunar Regolith Excavator Student Competition.
Design teams must include:
* One Faculty or Industry Advisor with a college or university affiliation;
* Two or more undergraduate or graduate students.
A group of universities may also work in collaboration on an excavator project entry. Multidisciplinary teams are encouraged. Collaborations between majority institutions and minority serving institutions are encouraged. Corporate sponsorship is allowed.
Important Dates
Excavator Project proposals accepted from August 1, 2009 through March 30, 2010
Competition Registration Deadline: March 30, 2010
Collaboration Notification due: March 30, 2010
Systems Engineering Paper due: April 15, 2010
Slide Presentation due: April 15, 2010
Outreach Report due: April 15, 2010
Practice Days: May 25-26, 2010
Competition Days: May 27-28, 2010
The Lunar Regolith Excavator Student Competition will be similar to the Regolith Excavation Challenge NASA Centennial Challenge. Until the Lunar Regolith Excavator Student Competition official rules are posted to this website, refer to rules and regulations for the Regolith Excavation Challenge at: http://regolith.csewi.org/rulesandregistration.
Prizes:
In addition to prizes listed below, school plaques, and individual certificates will be awarded for exemplary performance in the following Lunar Regolith Excavator Student Team Project categories:
Lunar Regolith Excavator Performance On-Site in Sand Box
1st Place $5,000 and VIP KSC launch tickets
2nd Place $2,500 and VIP KSC launch tickets
3rd Place $1,000 and VIP KSC launch tickets
Systems Engineering Paper $500
Outreach to Informal Education or K-12 Education $500
Slide Presentation $500
Team Spirit Competition $500
Disclaimer
In the case of a tie, the prize(s) will be equally divided between all teams tied for first, second, or third place. For example: In the case of only two teams qualifying for a prize and tying for first place in the excavator performance category, each would receive $3,750 and the third prize amount of $1,000 would not be awarded. Judges’ decisions will be final.
Winning the Lunar Regolith Excavation in Sand Box Category:
The challenge will be conducted in a “head to head” format, in which the teams will be required to perform a competition attempt using the regolith simulant, sandbox and collector provided by NASA. NASA will fill the sandbox with regolith simulant, compact it, and place rocks in the sandbox. Each competition attempt will occur sequentially. Between each competition attempt, the rocks will be removed, the regolith will be returned to a compacted state and the rocks will be returned to the sandbox. Consideration of prize awards will be based on each team's performance during the official competition attempt. All excavated mass deposited in the collector during the competition attempt will be weighed after completion of the competition attempt. The teams that excavate the first, second, and third most lunar regolith simulant mass over the minimum excavation requirement within the time limit will respectively win first, second, and third place prizes. Official Rules TBD. Students, check back at a later date.
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