Two Andhra Pradesh teens selected to compete in Nasa's Human Exploration Rover Challenge

The challenge tasks students worldwide with designing and constructing a rover capable of navigating the surfaces of the Moon and Mars, as well as developing a multi-purpose task tool
Pic: Edexlive
Pic: Edexlive

Two students from Andhra Pradesh, 17-year-old Sai Akshara Vemuri and 15-year-old Akarsh Chittineni have been selected to compete in NASA's Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC) 2023 design challenge. The challenge, which takes place annually, tasks students worldwide with designing and constructing a rover capable of navigating the surfaces of the Moon and Mars, as well as developing a multi-purpose task tool. The Andhra Pradesh students are currently working on their entries for the competition.

NASA has selected 61 teams worldwide to compete in the HERC 2023, according to a report by The New Indian Express. Among those selected are two students from Andhra Pradesh: Sai Akshara Vemuri, a Class XII student at Delhi Public School, Vijayawada, and Akarsh Chittineni, a Class X student at KCP Residential Public School, Vijayawada.

The selection was made by the Young Tinker Educational Foundation in Bhubaneshwar, Odisha, which also chose four other students from across the country to participate in the challenge, including Basudeba Bhoi (14) of Cuttack, Odisha, Akankshya Dash (17) and Om Padhi (16) from Adruta Children Home, Odisha and Siddhanth Ghosh (18) of Maharashtra. Both Akshara and Akarsh are in the under-19 category.

The selected team, consisting of Sai Akshara Vemuri and Akarsh Chittineni, will be working on designing, assembling, fabricating, testing, and manufacturing a human-powered rover vehicle that is capable of traversing the surfaces of Mars and the Moon. They have also conducted several STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) sessions to inspire and encourage younger students in Andhra Pradesh, including those at ZPH School in Unguturu, Krishna District, Urdu School Farooq Nagar, Municipal High School in Patamata Lanka, and neighbourhood communities in Vijayawada.

Sai Akshara Vemuri and Akarsh Chittineni submitted a proposal to the Nasa HERC team and were selected and invited to participate on October 6, 2022. Since then, the team has been focusing on designing, material testing, and manufacturing the human-powered rover vehicle. In April 2023, they will be travelling to the United States to represent India, after shipping the rover they have manufactured to the USA.

Speaking to TNIE, Akshara who is also an archer said, "This opportunity makes me feel so proud and ecstatic. I am the student team safety officer in this project. As the manufacturing process involves lots of hazardous methods like drilling, cutting, grinding and welding, I should ensure the safety of all the team members with necessary safety precautions. During the competition, while the rover is traversing various terrains, I have to predict many failure methods and also come up with solutions to overcome them. Initially, each of our team was working on our respective categories like tech, prototyping, designing and safety. Now, we have started manufacturing our rover in Bhubaneswar and so far it is going on well. We are giving our 100% effort and doing our best to win the challenge."

Akarsh, who is the tech lead in the project told TNIE, "I got to know about the competition through Akshara who is a fellow member and applied to be a part of the team. We came to Bhubaneshwar to contribute to the manufacturing process of the rover. As a tech lead was assigned to do work related to the materials such as identifying the manufacturer and procuring the material. Being a part of the team is like a dream come true. Our mentors have given us ample support in our learning process."

Speaking about the training Anil Pradhan the mentor and the founder of the Young Tinker Foundation said, "For the last six months, our students have been engaged in researching, designing and manufacturing the rover. This team is a real inspiration for all the students out there. Through our foundation, we aim to provide a platform for all students to shine."

Vaishali Sharma, the Co-founder of the institute said, "This is a proud moment for India that, this year again, our student team has been invited by NASA to represent India at the Human Exploration Rover Challenge. Last year, our student team won World Rank 3 and this year our team is aiming for World Rank 1."

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