MBRSC Announces Winners Of The UAE Zero Robotic Programming Challenge For UAE Universities Held On The ISS
Astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi supervises the challenge from the International Space Station
The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) today announced the winners of the UAE Zero Robotics Programming Challenge (UAE ZRPC), a unique programming competition which took place onboard the International Space Station (ISS) with the participation of Emirati astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi. The UAE ZRPC was developed in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and NASA.
This Challenge provided university students with a remarkable opportunity to demonstrate and develop their programming and critical thinking skills. They achieved this by programming the free-flying robot, Astrobee, to write Arabic letters in the microgravity environment of the ISS.
The first place was awarded to the team from Khalifa University for demonstrating exceptional command over the Astrobee's control in a microgravity environment, with their impressive coding skills leading them to victory. The second and third places were secured by Team 2 and Team 1, respectively, from the UAE University.
His Excellency Salem Humaid AlMarri, Director General, MBRSC said: “Engaging students in the field of STEM is of paramount importance to the UAE's vision for a future rich in science and technology. With Sultan’s mission aboard the ISS, we open a new chapter in educational outreach initiatives. This challenge is the kind of inspired learning we aim for at MBRSC – nurturing the innovators and explorers of tomorrow and propelling the UAE to the forefront of global space exploration."
On 16 May, AlNeyadi assisted in performing the dry run of the UAE Zero Robotics Programming Challenge on the ISS. During the dry run, Astrobee robots were used to verify various aspects and programming for the final event. This was followed by the final code submission from the teams on May 23. The on-orbit final run was held on Friday with an on-site event organised at MBRSC where participating teams had the opportunity to witness the challenge live.
Challenge format
AlNeyadi assisted in performing the final run of the UAE Zero Robotics Programming Challenge. In this session, the teams competed by programming the Astrobee robot to spell out a set of passwords consisting of 3-6 Arabic letters for the crew. The passwords were required for a fictional scenario in which two astronauts, facing technical issues in radio communication, needed to communicate and enter a password to restart a power system.
Six teams took part in this challenge, totalling 31 students, representing five esteemed universities, with each team guided by a Lead Professor and a Team Lead. The participating teams included: one team each from American University in Dubai, Higher Colleges of Technology Abu Dhabi, Khalifa University, University of Sharjah, and two teams from UAE University.
Over the course of several weeks, the students engaged in an intensive training regimen to prepare themselves for the final code submissions. During the initial rounds of UAE ZRPC, the teams utilised an online simulation to test their code and closely observe the movement of the Astrobee. These codes were then uploaded to Astrobee, bringing their hard work to life as the robot executed the programmed tasks in space. The challenge promoted creative thinking, technical skill, and a keen understanding of real-world applications for programming in space.
The UAE Astronaut Programme is one of the projects managed by MBRSC under the UAE’s National Space Programme and funded by the ICT Fund of the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), which aims to support research and development in the ICT sector in the UAE and promote the country’s integration on the global stage.
