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Every year since 2007, the Mars So-
ciety holds an intriguing competition at
the Mars Desert Research Station near
the town of Hanksville in the state of
Utah in the USA. The competitors are
rovers, or space research vehicles, de-
signed and built by students from uni-
versities from all over the world. Dur-
ing the competition, numerous tasks
are demanded of the candidate vehicles,
which are designed to work and carry out
research on extraterrestrial surfaces. In
many cases, the innovations and break-
throughs made by these students are a
source of inspiration to real-time space
researchers.
This year, a Turkish team entered
the URC for the first time. The İstanbul
Technical University Rover Teamwas one
of 36 teams chosen from 82 entrants to
be invited to compete in Utah under des-
ert conditions that simulated the condi-
tions on the surface of Mars. Despite
certain difficulties and setbacks that can
be attributed to a lack of experience, the
İTÜ Rover Team finished thirteenth out
of the 36 competitors, a result that bodes
well for the future.
We are both proud and delighted at the outstanding performance of the Tekfen
Holding-sponsored İTÜ (İstanbul Technical University) Rover Team at the URC
(University Rover Challenge) held at the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah
between 1
st
and 3
rd
of June.