This year, the SA国际传媒 space development club – NAFT – will compete in the , a robotics competition where university teams from around the world design and build their own Mars rovers, putting them to the test in a series of missions. This is the first year that NAFT made it to the final round.
Around the world, scientists are developing Mars rovers so that they can conduct geological surveys and search for signs of past life on the red planet. NAFT have built a sturdy rover that can traverse rough, sandy terrains and rocky areas. The rover is also equipped with an arm and drill to collect and analyze soil samples.
NAFT’s motto is “bringing space closer to everyday life.” The club’s 50 student members develop hybrid rockets, Mars probes, and small-scale mock satellites (CanSats).They also run educational activities for children, showcasing the appeal of outer space to the next generation.
The competition is held in a desert that resembles the Mars landscape
The University Rover Challenge is held over four days at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in Utah, USA. This year, 116 teams entered from 18 countries, with 38 teams selected to advance to the final round. A total of three teams from Japan are set to participate, including NAFT.
The competition consists of four competitive missions that simulate actual exploration on Mars. These are a delivery mission, which involves the remote transportation of objects guided by a live camera feed; a science mission, in which soil samples are collected and analyzed, testing for evidence of life; an autonomous navigation mission, in which the vehicle navigates a number of checkpoints, and an equipment servicing mission in which an arm is used to open drawers and type on a keyboard.
The long road to the URC
NAFT began work on their Mars rover in the fall of 2023. It all started when Okamoto (currently a fourth-year student in the School of Engineering), saw a video about the University Rover Challenge online. Okamoto says, “I found it exciting: the idea of a big rover that could undertake missions in Mars’ harsh environment, and the freedom to design such a vehicle all by ourselves.”
At the time, no teams from Japan had ever competed in the URC, and Okamoto says that reaching the final round was a motivating factor. He told his peers in NAFT about the competition, and together he set up a project team with several other members to work on the rover. The team currently consists of 15 NAFT members.
Hirao, a fourth-year student in the School of Engineering and a skilled programmer since high school, decided right away that she wanted to take part. In NAFT, opportunities for her to put her talents to use had been few and far between. She sensed that the rover project would be a good chance to put her skills to the test.
Building a rover from scratch through trial and error
When they embarked on the project, the team found themselves on a steep learning curve. Otomo, a first-year master’s student in the Graduate School of Engineering, was in charge of making the rover’s arm. He recalls not knowing where to begin and having to teach himself the basics.
Building the rover was a hands-on learning experience: the team learned how to make it as they went. They applied to participate in the URC for the first time in March 2025, eighteen months into the project, but unfortunately, they did not make it past the preliminary screening. According to the judges’ feedback, their plan did not specify how they would integrate the systems required for carrying out the competition missions.
The second attempt, and onwards to the international competition
After their unsuccessful first attempt, the students decided to shake up the structure of their team. Initially, they had divided tasks between a control group, which developed the system that moves the rover, and a structural group, which built the actual vehicle and its components. However, when they put all the parts together, the rover did not move exactly as it should. They decided to redivide into six groups, with one group each responsible for the arm, the chassis, science, communications, electronics, and autonomy. The former control and structural duties were then reassigned to the relevant groups.
Frequent testing in each group was a key feature of the new team setup, making it easy to troubleshoot specific issues. They increased the rover’s stability by lowering its center of gravity and levelling up its independent steering. Additionally, adjustments to the communications system made it possible to operate the chassis and arm in real time. With these improvements, the team passed the competition’s preliminary round on their second attempt, securing them a place in the international competition in Utah.
Mizuno (a second-year student in the School of Informatics) said he was looking forward to seeing the variety of rovers that were set to take part in the competition.
“Robot competitions are different from sports; miracles simply just don’t happen,” Otomo commented as he made careful adjustments ahead of the event.
[Addendum] The struggle to secure funds
When the team started out, their first task was fundraising: it is said that the cost of building a rover to compete at the international level can cost several million yen.
Okamoto took the lead in trying to find sponsors, visiting robot and space-related exhibitions and stopping by company booths, telling company representatives about the activities and aims of NAFT. Thanks to his efforts, NAFT secured funding and in-kind support from more than 10 companies, including parts manufacturers. With additional support from the alumni association and former members of NAFT, they raised the 2 million yen they needed to build their rover. Okamoto says it was a good opportunity to learn about the fundraising side of the process.
Originally published in Japanese on May 22, 2026.
