If your kid is a budding rocket scientist, working for NASA is the dream. Now they have a chance to help design a new robot for an excavation mission on the moon! The Lunabotics Junior Contest is accepting entries now and harnesses the creativity of young engineers.

The contest is a collaboration between NASA and Future Engineers and assists a future Artemis Moon base. Competing students will design a robot that digs and moves lunar soil to a holding container. Submissions must include an image of the robot design and a written summary conceptualizing how it will operate on the Moon.

Kids from K-12 can participate and sign up either as individuals or register through their class. The Lunabotics Contest is open to public, private and homeschools and runs through January 25, 2022. 10 semifinalists will win a prize pack and four national finalists from each category will win a virtual session with a NASA subject matter expert. The national winner will be announced on March 29!

Artemis missions will create a long-term human presence that will make future Martian exploration more efficient. This particular contest is important because lunar soil could be used to create lunar concrete, reducing the materials needed to be transported from Earth. The Artemis Student Challenge series allow students everywhere to contribute to NASA’s work in exploration and stokes creativity. You can read more about the contest and find education resources here.

—Sarah Shebek

Featured image courtesy of Kindel Media, Pexels

 

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