Regolith Challenge T+2 Days

Here's more Regolith Excavation Challenge coverage:

T+2 Days... The 2008 Challenge is Over - Tech Ranch - This post covers how the day went for the top-ranked team - I think still a 1-person team - for 2 years in a row. It also shows a lot of Tech Ranch Tornado photos, and identifies the team's supporters and sponsors.

Moon vehicle competition at Cal Poly draws local teams - San Luis Obispo.com - This short article mentions local teams Tech Ranch and SLObotics (SLObotics photo included).

Robots On A Fake Moon - Darren - This gives the account of a spectator at the event who was there to support a relative. It includes a Flickr photoset and a couple videos.

A Day of Loose [sic] - The Good Word - Justin Park gives a discouraged account of the day, including the Falcon 1 launch attempt and the Regolith Challenge, which he attended. Personally, I'm not nearly as discouraged with the the lack of winners in this challenge. It's not easy, and the rules were completely changed this year (eg: rovers, obstacles), so it's essentially a new challenge. The teams didn't have much time to get ready, and there are always surprises with rule interpretations and so on at the first event.

The fact that there have been so few winners so far in the Centennial Challenges with so many teams and attempts just shows that the Challenges seem to have been set at roughly the right level of difficulty. It's a good investment by NASA. It would be interesting to have a few mini-prizes at these events for partial success to keep the teams going, though ...