NASA Rover Challenge Awards to be Presented April 16
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HUNTSVILLE, Ala., April 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ NASA s Human Exploration Rover Challenge will host a virtual awards ceremony for its competing teams Friday, April 16, at 9 a.m. CDT. Media wishing to attend the ceremony should contact Janet Sudnik of NASA s Marshall Space Flight Center by 5 p.m. on April 15.
The student competition – one of seven Artemis Student Challenges – tasks high school and college teams from around the world to design, build, and test a human-powered rover capable of traversing simulated terrain from the Moon, Mars, and other rocky planets. Along the way, teams are also required to complete scientific tasks, reflecting spacewalks that were completed during NASA s Apollo Program and may be completed during NASA s Artemis Program.
NASA Awards Mars Ascent Propulsion System Contract for Sample Return
Mars Ascent Vehicle Launching with Samples: This illustration shows a concept of how the NASA Mars Ascent Vehicle, carrying tubes containing rock and soil samples, could be launched from the surface of Mars in one step of the Mars sample return mission. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech. Full image and caption ›
The award moves NASA and ESA a step closer to realizing Mars Sample Return, an ambitious planetary exploration program that will build upon decades of science, knowledge, and experience.
NASA has awarded the Mars Ascent Propulsion System (MAPS) contract to Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation of Elkton, Maryland, to provide propulsion support and products for spaceflight missions at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Coupled with the successful touchdown of the Mars Perseverance rover, this award moves NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) one step closer to realizing Mars Sample