NASA hosts lunar robotics competition

MOFFIT FIELD, Calif., Oct. 15 (UPI) -- NASA says 23 teams are participating in this weekend's 2009 Regolith Excavation Challenge in California to find better ways of handling moon dust.

The two-day event begins Saturday at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif.

The space agency said the $750,000 prize competition -- part of its Centennial Challenges Program -- will involve 23 teams from across the nation using robots they designed and built to excavate simulated lunar soil, known as regolith. Teams will test their robots in a box approximately 13 feet square and 1 1/2 feet deep that contains eight tons of simulated moon soil.

To qualify for a prize, a robot must collect at least 330 pounds of regolith and deposit it into a container within 30 minutes, officials said. Trophies and cash prizes will be presented to the top three teams whose robots move the most regolith.

The event also will feature exhibits and speakers highlighting hands-on education projects, robotics and space exploration, NASA said.

Co-hosting the event with NASA are the California Space Authority Inc., the California Space Education and Workforce Institute, the Diani Building Corp. and Empirical Systems Aerospace, all California organizations.

A schedule of events is available at http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/events/2009/10.17.09.html.