In the middle of a dusty race track, Thor Oren 14 SC feverishly struggles to release the front wheel of his human-powered rover from the clutches of an unforgiving sandpit. But cranking on the pedals, he only sinks further into the trench. Eventually the lanky sculptor hops off his seat, yanks the vehicle onto solid ground and speeds away from the troublesome terrain as fast as he can. 

Oren and his peers were competing in the NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge (formerly known as the NASA Great Moonbuggy Race), a competition last Friday at the US Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL. More than 90 colleges from around the world entered their designs for a lightweight, two-person rover intended to race along a half-mile track meant to simulate Martian terrain – with plenty of rocks, craters and shifting sand. The challenge addresses the real mechanical problems NASA engineers face when preparing for actual exploration missions.

In preparation for the competition, the RISD team practically camped out in the ID Metal Shop over spring break, working nonstop with acetylene torches and brazing tools. They hammered out a series of iterations before constructing a steel-framed rover that weighs in at 45 kilograms (see top photo). “It’s incredibly light compared to other teams’ [vehicles],” notes Senior Critic Michael Lye 96 ID, who advised students on their entry. “We were really pleased with the efficiency of the design.”

In addition to keeping up a breakneck pace to prepare the vehicle for the competition, the venture was full of excitement. At one point during the race, the rover smashed into a large obstacle, which ended up damaging a wheel chain, along with its overall race times. But RISD students were thrilled to win the Crash and Burn Award, an accolade reserved for the team that recovers from the worst breakdown. 

“Students learned how to fix problems when they arise in a complicated mechanical system,” explains Lye. “That’s an invaluable experience.” 

Click here to watch a video of the Rover Challenge awards ceremony.