Girls Ruled the 2015 MOONBOTS Google Lunar XPRIZE Challenge
Girls go to the Moon to get more ... ??? Smart?
Google’s Lunar XPRIZE is an international competition to land a privately-owned robot on the Moon with $30 million in prize money. MOONBOTS is the kid version of the STEM-based challenge, and this year’s winning teams comprised more girls than boys!
The competition tasks kids ages 8 through 17 to design and create their own lunar rover “based on a legend or theory that inspires them about the Moon.” The winners get to travel to Japan and meet the teams competing to win the Lunar XPRIZE—an inspiring journey for the talented young winners for sure.
As MOONBOTS announced this morning, these are the 2015 winning teams:
Team GalacTECHs (Tustin, CA): “[T]wo girls and two boys ages 8-11, who imagined a future where it’s common practice for people to vacation at a resort on the moon.” (via XPRIZE)
Linked Lunas (Fort Lauderdale, FL): “[T]win sisters Hadley and Delaney, age 9. Their mission is based on a historical tale and scientific theory that hits close to home—that the earth once had ‘twin’ moons that collided and merged into one.” (via XPRIZE)
Mecaliks (Cuautitlan Izcalli, Mexico): “[T]hree girls ages 9-12, who were inspired by Mayan cultural beliefs that time is measured by lunar phases.” (via XPRIZE)
Moonshot (Brooklyn, NY and Naples, Italy): “[T]wo boy cousins, ages 10 and 12, who live across the world from each other but share a similar interest in the moon and the way it brings people together—just as it does in their family.” (via XPRIZE)
(via GeekDad, featured image via NASA)
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