[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 72 (Friday, April 14, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23104-23105]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-07972]
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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
[NOTICE: (23-032)]
Lunabotics Challenge
AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Lunabotics Challenge.
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SUMMARY: The Lunabotics Challenge (one of NASA's Artemis Student
Challenges, https://stem.nasa.gov/artemis/) has provided college
students from around the country an opportunity to engage and learn the
NASA Systems Engineering process by designing and building robotic
Lunar excavators capable of mining regolith and icy regolith simulants.
DATES: Challenge registration opened on September 14, 2022 and closed
on October 19, 2022. No further requests for registration will be
accepted after the stated deadline.
Other important dates, including deadlines for key deliverables
from the Teams, are listed on the Challenge website: https://www.nasa.gov/offices/education/centers/kennedy/technology/nasarmc.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To get additional information
regarding the Lunabotics Challenge, please contact Rich Johanboeke
(321) 867-0586 and visit: https://www.nasa.gov/offices/education/centers/kennedy/technology/nasarmc.html.
Questions and comments regarding the challenge should be addressed
to: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Summary
The Lunar robot shall drive in a simulated Lunar arena filled with
Black Point -1 regolith simulant and excavate the icy-regolith simulant
buried under an overburden of granular material, then return to the
starting site and deliver the granular material to a simulated
receiving hopper. More details are provided in Lunabotics Guidebook.
This is a two-semester, virtual challenge, designed to educate college
students in the application of the NASA Systems Engineering process.
The virtual events of the Challenge are as follows: 1. Project
Management Plan, 2. Systems Engineering Paper, 3. Public Outreach
Report, 4. Presentation and Demonstration (optional), and a 5. Proof of
Life Video. NASA is providing the prize purse.
For more than a decade, NASA has been able to gather valuable data
about necessary excavation hardware and surface locomotion processes
that can be implemented as the agency prepares to return to the Moon
through the Artemis program. Major gaps exist between the functional
capabilities and the technologies necessary for Lunar surface
construction, and the requirements needed to narrow these gaps are in
development and will support the long-term presence on the Moon, also
known as ``Infrastructure to Stay''. Once identified, NASA will seek
input from American academia to find new and innovative ways to apply
existing or develop new technologies to meet Artemis Program
requirements.
The skills developed in Lunabotics apply to other high technology
industries that rely on the systems engineering principles. These
industries will create a workforce posed to lead a new space-based
economy and add to the economic strength of our country. NASA directly
benefits from this challenge by annually assessing student designs and
data the same way it does for its own, less frequent, prototypes.
Encouraging innovation in student designs increases the potential of
identifying clever solutions to the many challenges inherent in future
Artemis missions.
Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET)
One of the goals of Lunabotics is to introduce students to the ABET
experience by aligning the events to those student outcomes. ABET is a
nonprofit, ISO 9001 certified organization that accredits college and
university programs in applied and natural science, computing,
engineering,
[[Page 23105]]
and engineering technology. ABET accredits college and university
programs in the disciplines of applied and natural science, computing,
engineering, and engineering technology at the associate, bachelor's,
and master's degree levels. ABET is the basis of quality for STEM
disciplines all over the world. Schools do not have to be ABET
accredited to participate.
STEM Engagement
NASA's journeys have propelled technological breakthroughs, pushed
the frontiers of scientific research, and expanded our understanding of
the universe. These accomplishments, and those to come, share a common
genesis: education in science, technology, engineering, and math. In
NASA STEM Engagement, we deliver tools for students and educators to
learn and succeed. We seek to: Create unique opportunities for a
diverse set of students to contribute to NASA's work in exploration and
discovery; Build a diverse future STEM workforce by engaging students
in authentic learning experiences with NASA's people, content, and
facilities, and attract diverse groups of students to STEM through
learning opportunities that spark interest and provide connections to
NASA's mission and work. NASA STEM Engagement strives to increase K-12
involvement in NASA projects, enhance higher education, support
underrepresented communities, strengthen online education, and boost
NASA's contribution to informal education. The intended outcome is a
generation.
I. Prize Amounts
Lunabotics has a total prize purse of $28,000.00 USD, (twenty-eight
thousand United States dollars). There are three categories for awards
in which teams can place 1st, 2nd or 3rd Place. Teams must meet the
eligibility requirements to receive a prize from NASA.
II. Eligibility To Participate and Win Prize Money
To be eligible to win a prize, competitors must register and comply
with all requirements in the Lunabotics guidebook. Interested Teams
should refer to the official Lunabotics website (https://www.nasa.gov/offices/education/centers/kennedy/technology/nasarmc.html) for full
details on eligibility and registration.
III. Official Rules
The complete official rules for the Lunabotics can be found at:
https://www.nasa.gov/offices/education/centers/kennedy/technology/nasarmc.html.
Cheryl Parker,
Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023-07972 Filed 4-13-23; 8:45 am]
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