{
  "author": "Elyna Niles-Carnes",
  "categories": [
    "STEM Engagement at NASA",
    "Find Your Place",
    "For Colleges & Universities",
    "Kennedy Space Center",
    "Learning Resources",
    "Next Gen STEM",
    "Partner with NASA STEM"
  ],
  "content_encoded": "<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><a href=\"https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1920&#038;h=1280&#038;fit=clip&#038;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1920&amp;h=1280&amp;fit=clip&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Image shows three people in white protective suits inside a room with another person wearing a blue shirt and blue jeans at NASA&#039;s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2022. Around them is a red cart with a silver structure and green looking wheels. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1920&amp;h=1280&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1920w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=300&amp;h=200&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 300w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=768&amp;h=512&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 768w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1024&amp;h=683&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1024w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1536&amp;h=1024&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1536w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=400&amp;h=267&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 400w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=600&amp;h=400&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 600w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=900&amp;h=600&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 900w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1200&amp;h=800&amp;fit=crop&amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" /></a></figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Students from the United States Military Academy (West Point), dressed in safety gear, prepare to enter the mining arena with their robotic miner during NASA’s LUNABOTICS competition on May 24, 2022, at the Center for Space Education near the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. More than 35 teams from around the U.S. have designed and built remote-controlled robots for the mining competition. </div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA/Kim Shiflett</div></figcaption></div></div></div>\n\n\n<p>NASA&nbsp;will hold its&nbsp;<a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2026&nbsp;Lunabotics&nbsp;Challenge</a>&nbsp;Tuesday,&nbsp;May 19, to Thursday, May&nbsp;21,&nbsp;at the&nbsp;Astronauts Memorial Foundation’s Center for Space Education at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>Links to view the Lunabotics&nbsp;competition live can be found on the agency&#8217;s <a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge/\">Lunabotics page</a>. The competition is slated to run between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. each day.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>Media are invited to attend&nbsp;the competition&nbsp;event&nbsp;on Wednesday, May 20, and should RSVP&nbsp;by&nbsp;4 p.m.&nbsp;EDT on Monday,&nbsp;May 18,&nbsp;to&nbsp;the Kennedy newsroom at: <a href=\"mailto:ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>For this challenge,&nbsp;50 college teams from across the country&nbsp;will convene to&nbsp;design, build, and operate their own lunar robot&nbsp;prototypes.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>The teams’&nbsp;self-driving&nbsp;rovers must be capable of building a berm,&nbsp;a&nbsp;protective barrier,&nbsp;from&nbsp;soil and other material simulating&nbsp;lunar regolith to&nbsp;safeguard&nbsp;Artemis infrastructure on the Moon.&nbsp;In space, such&nbsp;berms could&nbsp;protect&nbsp;equipment from debris during&nbsp;lunar&nbsp;landings&nbsp;and launches, shade cryogenic propellant tank farms,&nbsp;help&nbsp;shield a nuclear power plant from space radiation, and&nbsp;serve other purposes.&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>“The task of robotically building berm structures will be important for preparation and support of crewed lunar missions,” said Kurt Leucht, NASA software developer, <a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/isru\">In-Situ Resource Utilization</a> researcher, and Lunabotics commentator located at Kennedy. “These competing teams are not only building critical engineering skills that will assist their future careers, but they are literally helping NASA prepare for our future Artemis missions to the Moon.”&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>NASA’s&nbsp;Lunabotics&nbsp;Challenge&nbsp;was established in&nbsp;2010. As one of&nbsp;the agency’s <a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/stem/artemis.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Artemis Student Challenges</a>, the competition is designed to engage and retain students in STEM fields by expanding opportunities for student research and design in science, technology, engineering, and&nbsp;mathematics.&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more competition information, visit:&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge\">https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge</a></p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">–end–&nbsp;</p>\n\n\n\n<p>Amanda Griffin&nbsp;<br>Kennedy Space Center, Fla.&nbsp;<br>321-867-2468&nbsp;<br><a href=\"mailto:amanda.griffin@nasa.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">amanda.griffin@nasa.gov</a>&nbsp;</p>\n",
  "description": "NASA&#160;will hold its&#160;2026&#160;Lunabotics&#160;Challenge&#160;Tuesday,&#160;May 19, to Thursday, May&#160;21,&#160;at the&#160;Astronauts Memorial Foundation’s Center for Space Education at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.&#160;&#160; Links to view the Lunabotics&#160;competition live can be found on the agency&#8217;s Lunabotics page. The competition is slated to run between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. each day.&#160;&#160;&#160; Media are invited to attend&#160;the [&#8230;]",
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  "feed_url": "https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/kennedy/feed/",
  "guid": "https://www.nasa.gov/?post_type=press-release&p=994761",
  "link": "https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-invites-media-to-annual-lunabotics-robotics-competition/",
  "media_content_url": "https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg",
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  "pubDate": "Mon, 11 May 2026 19:11:57 +0000",
  "source_name": "kennedy",
  "title": "NASA Invites Media to Annual Lunabotics Robotics Competition ",
  "xml": "<item xmlns:dc=\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\" xmlns:ns1=\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\">\n\t\t<title>NASA Invites Media to Annual Lunabotics Robotics Competition </title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-invites-media-to-annual-lunabotics-robotics-competition/</link>\n\t\t\n\t\t<dc:creator>Elyna Niles-Carnes</dc:creator>\n\t\t<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 19:11:57 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t\t\t<category>STEM Engagement at NASA</category>\n\t\t<category>Find Your Place</category>\n\t\t<category>For Colleges &amp; Universities</category>\n\t\t<category>Kennedy Space Center</category>\n\t\t<category>Learning Resources</category>\n\t\t<category>Next Gen STEM</category>\n\t\t<category>Partner with NASA STEM</category>\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink=\"false\">https://www.nasa.gov/?post_type=press-release&amp;p=994761</guid>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<description>NASA&amp;#160;will hold its&amp;#160;2026&amp;#160;Lunabotics&amp;#160;Challenge&amp;#160;Tuesday,&amp;#160;May 19, to Thursday, May&amp;#160;21,&amp;#160;at the&amp;#160;Astronauts Memorial Foundation’s Center for Space Education at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.&amp;#160;&amp;#160; Links to view the Lunabotics&amp;#160;competition live can be found on the agency&amp;#8217;s Lunabotics page. The competition is slated to run between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. each day.&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160; Media are invited to attend&amp;#160;the [&amp;#8230;]</description>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ns1:encoded>&lt;div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"&gt;&lt;div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"&gt;&lt;div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"&gt;&lt;figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"&gt;&lt;a href=\"https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1920&amp;#038;h=1280&amp;#038;fit=clip&amp;#038;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint\" rel=\"noopener\"&gt;&lt;img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1920&amp;amp;h=1280&amp;amp;fit=clip&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Image shows three people in white protective suits inside a room with another person wearing a blue shirt and blue jeans at NASA&amp;#039;s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2022. Around them is a red cart with a silver structure and green looking wheels. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1920&amp;amp;h=1280&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1920w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=300&amp;amp;h=200&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 300w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=768&amp;amp;h=512&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 768w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1024&amp;amp;h=683&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1024w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1536&amp;amp;h=1024&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1536w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=400&amp;amp;h=267&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 400w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=600&amp;amp;h=400&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 600w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=900&amp;amp;h=600&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 900w, https://images-assets.nasa.gov/image/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086/KSC-20220524-PH-KLS01_0086~large.jpg?w=1200&amp;amp;h=800&amp;amp;fit=crop&amp;amp;crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/figure&gt;&lt;figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"&gt;&lt;div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\"&gt;Students from the United States Military Academy (West Point), dressed in safety gear, prepare to enter the mining arena with their robotic miner during NASA’s LUNABOTICS competition on May 24, 2022, at the Center for Space Education near the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. More than 35 teams from around the U.S. have designed and built remote-controlled robots for the mining competition. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class=\"hds-credits\"&gt;NASA/Kim Shiflett&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/figcaption&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;NASA&amp;nbsp;will hold its&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"&gt;2026&amp;nbsp;Lunabotics&amp;nbsp;Challenge&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;Tuesday,&amp;nbsp;May 19, to Thursday, May&amp;nbsp;21,&amp;nbsp;at the&amp;nbsp;Astronauts Memorial Foundation’s Center for Space Education at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;Links to view the Lunabotics&amp;nbsp;competition live can be found on the agency&amp;#8217;s &lt;a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge/\"&gt;Lunabotics page&lt;/a&gt;. The competition is slated to run between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. each day.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;Media are invited to attend&amp;nbsp;the competition&amp;nbsp;event&amp;nbsp;on Wednesday, May 20, and should RSVP&amp;nbsp;by&amp;nbsp;4 p.m.&amp;nbsp;EDT on Monday,&amp;nbsp;May 18,&amp;nbsp;to&amp;nbsp;the Kennedy newsroom at: &lt;a href=\"mailto:ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"&gt;ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;For this challenge,&amp;nbsp;50 college teams from across the country&amp;nbsp;will convene to&amp;nbsp;design, build, and operate their own lunar robot&amp;nbsp;prototypes.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;The teams’&amp;nbsp;self-driving&amp;nbsp;rovers must be capable of building a berm,&amp;nbsp;a&amp;nbsp;protective barrier,&amp;nbsp;from&amp;nbsp;soil and other material simulating&amp;nbsp;lunar regolith to&amp;nbsp;safeguard&amp;nbsp;Artemis infrastructure on the Moon.&amp;nbsp;In space, such&amp;nbsp;berms could&amp;nbsp;protect&amp;nbsp;equipment from debris during&amp;nbsp;lunar&amp;nbsp;landings&amp;nbsp;and launches, shade cryogenic propellant tank farms,&amp;nbsp;help&amp;nbsp;shield a nuclear power plant from space radiation, and&amp;nbsp;serve other purposes.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;“The task of robotically building berm structures will be important for preparation and support of crewed lunar missions,” said Kurt Leucht, NASA software developer, &lt;a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/isru\"&gt;In-Situ Resource Utilization&lt;/a&gt; researcher, and Lunabotics commentator located at Kennedy. “These competing teams are not only building critical engineering skills that will assist their future careers, but they are literally helping NASA prepare for our future Artemis missions to the Moon.”&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;NASA’s&amp;nbsp;Lunabotics&amp;nbsp;Challenge&amp;nbsp;was established in&amp;nbsp;2010. As one of&amp;nbsp;the agency’s &lt;a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/stem/artemis.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"&gt;Artemis Student Challenges&lt;/a&gt;, the competition is designed to engage and retain students in STEM fields by expanding opportunities for student research and design in science, technology, engineering, and&amp;nbsp;mathematics.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;For more competition information, visit:&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p class=\"has-text-align-center\"&gt;&lt;a href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge\"&gt;https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/lunabotics-challenge&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p class=\"has-text-align-center\"&gt;–end–&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n\n\n\n&lt;p&gt;Amanda Griffin&amp;nbsp;&lt;br&gt;Kennedy Space Center, Fla.&amp;nbsp;&lt;br&gt;321-867-2468&amp;nbsp;&lt;br&gt;&lt;a href=\"mailto:amanda.griffin@nasa.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"&gt;amanda.griffin@nasa.gov&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;\n</ns1:encoded>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t</item>\n\t\t"
}