NASA Invites Reporters To Second Annual Lunabotics Competition

Forty-six teams of undergraduate and graduate students from the United States, Bangladesh, Canada, Colombia and India will participate in NASA’s Lunabotics Mining Competition May 26 – 28 at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Reporters are invited to cover the competition’s opening day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. EDT at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. For access to the facility, reporters should contact Jillian McRae at 321-449-4273. Request for interviews with NASA representatives should be submitted to Tracy Young at 321-867-2468.

The student teams have designed and built remote controlled or autonomous robots that can excavate simulated lunar dirt. During the competition, the teams’ designs, known as lunabots, will go head-to-head to determine which one can collect and deposit the most simulated lunar dirt within 15 minutes.

The event is designed to engage and retain students in the science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, disciplines critical to NASA’s missions. For more information on the competition and a list of participating teams, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/lunabotics

For information about the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, visit:
http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com

For information on NASA’s education programs, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/education