Area is tough, however it’s not all {hardware}.  

The brand new Lunar Autonomy Problem invitations groups of scholars from U.S. schools and universities to check their software program improvement abilities. Working totally in digital simulations of the Moon’s floor, groups will develop an autonomous agent utilizing software program that may accomplish pre-defined duties with out assist from people. These brokers will probably be used to navigate a digital twin of NASA’s ISRU Pilot Excavator (IPEx) and map specified areas within the digital surroundings. The IPEx is an autonomous mobility robotic engineered to effectively gather and transport lunar regolith, the unfastened rocky materials on the Moon’s floor.     

Autonomous methods enable spacecraft, rovers, and robots to function with out counting on fixed contact with astronauts or mission management. Earlier than {hardware} is trusted to function independently on location, which for Artemis missions contains the Moon, it should be examined nearly. Excessive-fidelity digital simulations enable NASA to anticipate and enhance how methods, each software program and {hardware}, will operate within the bodily world. Testing in digital simulations additionally permits technologists to discover completely different mission eventualities, observe potential outcomes, and cut back dangers. 

Within the Lunar Autonomy Problem, college students will develop their data of autonomous methods by working with the identical simulation instruments created in-house by Caterpillar Inc. of Irving, Texas, over a long time of analysis and improvement. Groups might want to make the most of the IPEx digital twin’s cameras and orientation sensors to precisely map floor elevation and determine obstacles. Like with actual lunar missions, groups should additionally handle their vitality utilization and think about the Moon’s harsh terrain and low-light situations. Via the competitors, members will be taught extra about autonomous robotic operation, floor mapping, localization, orientation, path planning, and hazard detection. 

Groups should be comprised of at the very least 4 undergraduate and/or graduate college students and a school advisor at a U.S. faculty or college.

The problem will happen between November 2024 and Could 2025 and can embody each a qualifying spherical and a remaining spherical. groups should apply by Thursday, Nov. 7.

• Spherical 1: Chosen groups will develop and prepare their agent utilizing offered digital environments. Groups may have three alternatives to submit their agent to run in a qualification surroundings. For every submission, their agent will probably be scored based mostly on efficiency.
  The highest scoring groups will probably be invited to proceed.

• Spherical 2: Groups will work to additional refine the brokers. Groups may have a number of alternatives in whole to submit their brokers to the competitors surroundings. The highest three groups will probably be named problem winners.   

groups ought to fastidiously evaluation the Problem Tips and the Lunar Autonomy Problem web site for extra particulars, together with proposal necessities, FAQs, and extra technical steerage. 

The highest three highest-scoring groups on the leaderboard within the finals will probably be awarded money prizes: 

First Place: $10,000 

Second Place: $5,000 

Third Place: $3,000 

Purposes should be submitted to NASA STEM Gateway by Nov. 7, 2024.  
Be taught extra concerning the problem:

The Lunar Autonomy Problem is a collaboration between NASA, The Johns Hopkins College (JHU) Utilized Physics Laboratory (APL), Caterpillar Inc., and Embodied AI. APL is managing the problem for NASA. 

Authored by: Stephanie Yeldell, Training Integration Lead
Area Expertise Mission Directorate
NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC