{"id":9692,"date":"2023-12-06T18:07:35","date_gmt":"2023-12-06T22:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/six-finalists-named-in-nasas-3-5-million-break-the-ice-challenge\/"},"modified":"2023-12-06T18:07:35","modified_gmt":"2023-12-06T22:07:35","slug":"six-finalists-named-in-nasas-3-5-million-break-the-ice-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/six-finalists-named-in-nasas-3-5-million-break-the-ice-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Six Finalists Named in NASA\u2019s $3.5 Million Break the Ice Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"

Six Finalists Named in NASA\u2019s $3.5 Million Break the Ice Challenge<\/h2>\n

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4 min read<\/p>\n

Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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By Savannah Bullard<\/em><\/p>\n

The stage is set for the finale of NASA\u2019s Break the Ice Lunar Challenge.<\/a><\/p>\n

Conceived in 2020,<\/a> Break the Ice tasked innovators with creating robotic systems that can traverse the volatile terrain of the Lunar South Pole. These robots must be able to dig into the Moon\u2019s regolith \u2013 the dusty, icy \u201cdirt\u201d that makes up the lunar surface \u2013 and transport it to a secondary location for in-situ resource utilization<\/a> (ISRU) processing.<\/p>\n

If deployed on a NASA mission, these systems would operate in the permanently shadowed regions<\/a> of the Moon, an area that receives no sunlight. These technologies must survive bitterly cold conditions and cannot rely on solar power regeneration. If successful, NASA can excavate the regolith from this area and use the resources derived from the materials, like frozen water, to aid astronauts living on the Moon.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur goal is to provide solutions to make living on the Moon a reality, and Break the Ice directly contributes to that mission,\u201d said Denise Morris,<\/a> program manager for NASA\u2019s Centennial Challenges. \u201cExcavating lunar regolith before humans arrive on the Moon will allow us to find uses for that material before they get there \u2013 if we could build a lunar habitat out of the regolith or extract the water for our astronauts to drink, that means less mass on our vehicles and less work for our crews.\u201d<\/p>\n

Phase 1 of the competition focused on designing systems that could achieve three components: excavation, travel, and delivery. Of the 31 teams who submitted eligible proposals, 13 won cash prizes<\/a> ranging from $25,000 to $125,000.<\/p>\n

Phase 2: Level 1 opened in June 2022.<\/a> Consisting of Phase 1 winners and newcomers, 25 teams developed their initial designs into prototypes with technical reports, engineering designs, and test plans. Six months later, 13 U.S. semifinalists were named,<\/a> each earning an equal share of $500,000. Two international teams were also recognized as semifinalists, though they were not eligible to receive monetary prizes from NASA.<\/p>\n

In Phase 2: Level 2, the finalist pool comprised of garage inventors, academics, industry professionals, and hobbyists from 11 U.S. states, the Netherlands, and India. Nine of these teams attempted a 15-day demonstration trial at their own testing sites to prove the capabilities of their prototypes. The teams live-streamed the tests and took turns hosting representatives from Centennial Challenges for in-person observations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat impresses me the most with this batch of competitors is their innate ability to each find unique ways to approach the solution,\u201d said Break the Ice Challenge Manager Naveen Vetcha,<\/a> who supports Centennial Challenges through Jacobs Space Exploration Group. \u201cEach site visit provided our subject matter experts with new ways to think about this technology and operations, and some of these teams expanded our expectations for how to bridge this technology gap.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Phase 2: Level 2 winning teams are:<\/p>\n

1st<\/sup> Place ($300,000):<\/strong> Starpath Robotics (San Francisco, CA)<\/p>\n

2nd<\/sup> Place ($200,000):<\/strong> Terra Engineering (Gardena, CA)<\/p>\n

3rd<\/sup> Place ($125,000):<\/strong> The Ice Diggers (Golden, CO)<\/p>\n

Runners Up ($75,000 each):<\/strong><\/p>\n