The UIU Mars Rover Team, operating under the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR) at United International University (UIU), has made a history by securing 3rd place globally and 1st place in Asia at the University Rover Challenge (URC) 2026 organised by The Mars Society, USA.
The competition was held on 27-30 May 2026 at the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah, USA. The 'UIU Mars Rover Team' has earned the distinction of being the 1st team in Asia for five consecutive years, from 2022-2026, says a statement.
During the four-day final, the teams performed four missions including science exploration, autonomous navigation, extreme terrain traversal and equipment servicing missions to demonstrate the capabilities of their rover and operation skills.
Competing against some of the world's leading engineering institutions, the UIU Mars Rover Team earned an overall score of 400.44 points, securing 3rd place among the world's top university rover teams and 1stplace among Asian teams in the URC 2026.
A total of 116 university teams from around the world initially participated in the event.
The UIU Mars Rover Team was advised by Prof Dr Hasan Sarwar, dean of School of Science and Engineering, UIU, and Dr Suman Ahammed, head of the Department of CSE, UIU.
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