The tasks include:
• Survive the drop to Mars (Device must be able to sustain a 2ft drop or travel across a zip line onto the course )
• Maneuver out of a crater (Device must be able to drive out of a pit)
• Navigate through difficult terrain (Device must be able to maneuver speed bumps, up/down ramps, different surfaces)
• Sort through materials found on the crater (Device must be able to sort different size/weight materials)
• Travel blindly through a tunnel and activate light switch (REQUIRES TEAM WORK!) (Device must be able to maneuver through a tunnel and turn on light switch)
• Dispose of sorted materials into space craft (Device must be able to drop off sorted materials into a bin)

Mars Research and Exploration

Mankind has been fascinated with the cosmos throughout recorded history. Of particular interest has been Mars, the planet fourth from the sun. In science and science fiction alike, the prospect of life on Mars has inspired curiosity and creativity. Using water as an indicator of the ability to sustain life, scientists have pursued both the prospects of human habituation on Mars and the possibility of native Martian life forms. We have gathered a wealth of information about our mysterious red neighbor through exploratory space missions. Thus, the story of our fascination with Mars is also one of technological and scientific innovation.

In 1965, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched the Mariner 4. Using a four-track tape recorder, it was the first spacecraft to obtain and transmit close range images of Mars. Through technological advancements, just four years later the 1969 Mariner 6 and 7 used computers and probes that transmitted data at a rate of almost 2000 times that of Mariner 4 and photographed 10 times more of Mars’ surface!

In 1971 NASA launched the Mariner 9 and collected 27 times the amount of data retrieved by all previous Mariner Mars missions combined. It also noted evidence of flow features, and therefore a possible history of liquid water on Mars’ surface, intensifying questions of the existence of life on Mars.
Thus in 1975, NASA launched the Viking 1 and 2 with the mission of finding life. Although this goal was unfulfilled, for the first time the Orbiters imaged the entire surface of Mars, documenting its two main regions: northern low plains and southern cratered highlands.

In 2008 NASA launched the Phoenix Mars Lander. The Lander targets Mars’ circumpolar region using a robotic arm to dig through the top soil layer to the water ice below and ultimately bring both soil and water ice to the Lander platform for sophisticated scientific analysis.

To date, data from NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander suggests liquid water has interacted with the Martian surface throughout the planet's history and into modern times. Through its measurements concerning carbon dioxide, we are still making ground-breaking discoveries about Mars.

Both NASA and the ESA (European Space Agency) continue their efforts to understand Mars. Upcoming missions plan to dig more deeply into the hidden stores of water which are thought to be underground. Because one of the most common causes of mission failure has been linked to spacecraft design, scientists and engineers continue to charter new frontiers by pioneering novel robotic designs for more effective spacecrafts.

Your Challenge is to land on Mars, maneuver your device through difficult terrain, and excavate materials that must be sorted and brought back to your spacecraft for research and scientific study.

Credit: NASA Mars Exploration Program at mars.jpl.nasa.gov