Chennai: Ocean Engineering students from IIT Madras have won the 2026 Njord Challenge, an international competition in Norway that tests autonomous surface vessels in real-world maritime conditions.

The victory by Team Aritra marks a significant achievement for IIT Madras' growing programme in marine autonomous systems, a release from the institution said on Friday.

It also builds on the departments' earlier success at the competition, where a different cohort of Team Aritra students finished third globally and won the Sustainability Award in 2023.

Prof V Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, met the students of Team Aritra and congratulated them on their victorius performance. He also encouraged them not to stop here but to take forward their work and ensure their expertise benefits the country.

Autonomous surface vessels have potential applications in coastal and harbour surveillance, port and strategic infrastructure monitoring, environmental and oceanographic data collection, hydrographic surveys and other persistent maritime operations where reducing the need for continuous human presence can improve safety and operational efficiency.

Organised by NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology), the Njord Challenge gives students hands-on experience in developing and deploying autonomous vessels under realistic maritime conditions.

One of the biggest tests for the team came from challenges not apparent in the competition specifications. Strong magnetic interference at the competition arena caused drift in the vessel's Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), affecting measurements used for autonomous navigation.

The students had to diagnose and address the issue to maintain reliable localisation and navigation, the release said.

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.