NASA Announces 32nd Annual Human Exploration Rover Challenge Winners
NASA’s 32nd annual Human Exploration Rover Challenge, one of the agency’s longest-standing student challenges, culminated April 10-11 with its final excursion event at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
Spanning nine months, the challenge tasks student teams from around the world to design, build, and test a lunar rover powered by either human pilots or remote control. The annual competition concluded with an awards ceremony recognizing the top-performing teams.
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supports HTML5 videoThis video highlights student teams from around the world that competed in NASA’s 2026 Human Exploration Rover Challenge, held April 10–11 at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center near the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Teams navigated a challenging obstacle course and completed complex mission tasks using human-powered and remote-controlled rovers.NASA
In the human-powered division, Parish Episcopal School in Dallas, Texas earned first place in the high school division, while the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Missouri, won the college and university title. In the remote-control division, Gould Academy in Bethel, Maine, earned the top award in the middle and high school division, and The University of Alabama in Huntsville in Huntsville, Alabama, secured the college and university title.
More than 500 students representing 42 teams from around the world participated in the 32nd annual competition. Teams included students from 28 colleges and universities, 13 high schools, and one middle school across 18 U.S. states, Puerto Rico,
Teams were scored on their ability to navigate a half-mile obstacle course, complete mission-specific task challenges, and pass multiple safety and design reviews conducted by NASA engineers, with awards presented across human-powered and remote-control divisions.
“This challenge gives students a hands-on opportunity to think like engineers and problem-solvers, applying real-world design principles to complex exploration scenarios,” said Vemitra Alexander, who leads the Human Exploration Rover Challenge for NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement at Marshall. “By encouraging innovation and teamwork, we’re helping prepare the next generation to contribute to missions that will take us farther into space.”
Here is the full list of winners:
Human-Powered High School Division
First Place: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas
Second Place: Kealakehe High School, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
Third Place: Debbie Smith Career and Technical Education Academy, Reno, Nevada
Human-Powered College/University Division
First Place: University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg, Missouri
Second Place: Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island
Third Place: The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama
Remote-Control Middle School/High School Division
First Place: Gould Academy, Bethel, Maine
Second Place: SoulPhamm, South Plainfield, New Jersey
Third Place: Space and Engineering Technologies Academy, San Antonio, Texas
Remote-Control College/University Division
First Place: The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama
Second Place: South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota
Third Place: Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida
Rookie of the Year
Gould Academy, Bethel, Maine
Task Challenge Award
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: Gould Academy, Bethel, Maine
College/University Division: The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama
Human-Powered
High School Division: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas
College/University Division: Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island
Ingenuity Award
Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Phoenix Award
Human-Powered
High School Division: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas
College/University Division: Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: Gould Academy, Bethel, Maine
College/University Division: University of the District of Columbia, Washington, D.C.
Project Review Award
Human-Powered
High School Division: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas
College/University Division: University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg, Missouri
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: SoulPhamm, South Plainfield, New Jersey
College/University Division: The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama
Industry STEM Engagement Award
Human-Powered
High School Division: Erie High School, Erie, Colorado
College/University Division: Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: Gould Academy, Bethel, Maine
Community STEM Engagement Award
Human-Powered
High School Division: Debbie Smith Career and Technical Education Academy, Reno, Nevada
College/University Division: Universidad Aeronáutica en Querétaro, Coyote, Mexico
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: Chaminade High School, Mineola, New York
College/University Division: ATLAS SkillTech University, Mumbai, India
Social Media Award
Human-Powered
High School Division: Albertville Innovation Academy, Albertville, Alabama
College/University Division: Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: Space and Engineering Technologies Academy, San Antonio, Texas
College/University Division: ATLAS SkillTech University, Mumbai, India
Team Spirit Award
Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Crash and Burn Award
The University of Alabama in Huntsville (Human Powered), Huntsville, Alabama
Most Improved Performance Award
Human-Powered
High School Division: Kealakehe High School, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
College/University Division: The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama
Remote-Control
Middle School/High School Division: Gould Academy, Bethel, Maine
College/University Division: Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina
Safety Award
High School Division: Parish Episcopal School, Dallas, Texas
College/University Division: University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg, Missouri
Pit Crew Award
High School Division: Erie High School, Erie, Colorado
College/University Division: Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina
Featherweight Award
Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina
The rover challenge is one of NASA’s eight Artemis Student Challenges reflecting the goals of the Artemis program, which will land Americans on the Moon while establishing a long-term presence for science and exploration, preparing for future human missions to Mars. NASA uses such challenges to encourage students to pursue degrees and careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
The competition is managed by NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement at NASA Marshall. Since its inception in 1994, more than 15,000 students have participated – with many former students working at NASA, or within the aerospace industry.
Learn more about the Human Exploration Rover Challenge.
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Last Updated
Apr 13, 2026
EditorLee MohonContactLance D. Davislance.d.davis@nasa.govLocationMarshall Space Flight Center
Related TermsMarshall Space Flight Center
