{"id":231782,"date":"2026-04-07T12:41:21","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T22:41:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=231782"},"modified":"2026-04-07T12:43:06","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T22:43:06","slug":"moon-mission-momentum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/04\/07\/moon-mission-momentum\/","title":{"rendered":"Moon mission momentum: 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> team named NASA<\/abbr> finalist for lunar power project"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"person
The NASA<\/abbr> competition challenges university teams to develop innovative technologies for future lunar and space missions. (Graphic credit: NASA<\/abbr>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Among the finalists in a national NASA<\/abbr> competition focused on advancing technologies for future space exploration is a student-led engineering team from the University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> at Mānoa<\/span> and 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Hilo.<\/p>\n

Team RoSE<\/abbr><\/a> (Robotic Space Exploration) is one of 14 university teams selected for the 2026 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts–Academic Linkage (RASC-AL<\/abbr>) Competition<\/a>. The challenge invites students to develop innovative concepts supporting sustained human activity on the Moon, Mars and beyond.<\/p>\n

Powering lunar operations<\/h2>\n
\"graphics
Project PETAL<\/abbr> aims to design a scalable power system combining nuclear and lunar-soil energy storage to support long-term Moon missions.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The team\u2019s proposal, Project PETAL<\/abbr><\/a> (Power Energy Transfer Architecture for the Lunar), centers on building a scalable power management and distribution system for lunar operations. The concept integrates multiple energy sources and storage methods, including nuclear power and energy stored using lunar soil, to support long-term missions and lays the groundwork for future applications on Mars.<\/p>\n

As a finalist, Project PETAL<\/abbr> received a $7,000 award to support participation in the RASC-AL<\/abbr> Forum, scheduled for June 1–4, in Cocoa Beach, Florida. During the forum, students will present their work to NASA<\/abbr> engineers and industry professionals while refining their concepts through technical feedback. The top-performing teams will be recognized for technical merit, innovation and presentation excellence.<\/p>\n

“Being part of this project has shown us what it takes to develop a concept that could be considered for future lunar and Mars missions,” said Nathan Chong, project manager of Project PETAL<\/abbr> and 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> computer engineering freshman. “It\u2019s been incredibly rewarding to collaborate across campuses and push ourselves to think at a much higher level.”<\/p>\n

The project also aligns with broader 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> efforts supporting NASA<\/abbr>\u2019s Artemis missions, including a lunar rover instrument<\/a> being developed at 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> that is slated to fly as part of the Artemis 5 mission. The work creates opportunities to connect student-led projects such as PETAL<\/abbr> with real-world systems headed to the Moon.<\/p>\n

Space science and engineering initiative<\/h2>\n

Project PETAL<\/abbr> members are primarily from engineering and related STEM<\/abbr> disciplines at 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> and 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Hilo. The interdisciplinary effort emphasizes hands-on design, systems integration and real-world problem-solving. Faculty advisors supporting the project include Matthew Siegler and Marvin Young from 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span>, and Branden Allen from 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Hilo.<\/p>\n

Project PETAL<\/abbr> is part of 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr>\u2019s Space Science and Engineering Initiative<\/a>, which aims to expand space technology development and hands-on student training. Launched in 2024, the initiative provides students with opportunities to work on advanced space systems while building Hawaiʻi<\/span>\u2019s capacity in aerospace engineering and instrumentation. It is a collaboration among 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span>\u2019s College of Engineering, the Institute for Astronomy and 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Hilo.<\/p>\n

Team RoSE<\/abbr> is one of more than 20 Vertically Integrated Projects<\/a> at 糖心Vlog官方<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span>, which seek to foster long-term, in-depth, project-based learning to engage students and better prepare them for future careers.<\/p>\n