International Mars Rover Competition Coming Soon to Krakow

The international Mars rover competition, the 11th European Rover Challenge 2025, will begin next week in Krakow at the specially prepared Marsyard, an area imitating the surface of Mars. Twenty-five student teams from around the world will compete in this prestigious competition.

The competition will run from Friday to Saturday (August 29-31). Everyone is welcome to come and watch the races. The results will be announced on Sunday.

Marsyard is located at the Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science at AGH University of Science and Technology. Inspired by the Valles Marineris canyon on Mars, it features a track on the surface where rovers designed and built by students will compete.

- This is a celebration of space, science and space enthusiasts - said Łukasz Wilczyński, president of the European Space Foundation, originator and main organizer of the competition, at a press conference on Friday.

He announced that nearly 700 competitors from around the world will be coming to Krakow, and they will be the best of the best, as many teams are competing, and many fail to qualify for the finals. This year, 25 teams were selected from 126 registered teams from 33 countries. Poland will be represented by five teams.

The organizers encourage everyone interested to come to the AGH University of Science and Technology. "Viewers will be able to practically touch the rovers," said the president of the European Space Foundation.

The event is not only scientific and entertaining, but also provides an opportunity to meet business representatives and foreign investors interested in the space industry. During the European Rover Challenge, visitors will be able to visit the exhibitor zone, including the Polish Space Agency. Guests will include experts from NASA, the European Space Agency, and Japanese, Hungarian, and British companies. Topics of discussion will include space medicine.

Wilczyński emphasized that students often work on a single rover for several years. During the competition, the jury will evaluate the rovers' performance in completing assigned tasks, inspired by real-life Mars missions. Currently, according to the organizer, this is the most challenging competition of its kind in the world.

The aim of the European Rover Challenge is to support the development of the space sector, including by improving the skills of young engineers.

The Dean of the AGH Faculty of Space Technology, Professor Tadeusz Uhl, especially invited young people to visit the competition site. He believes that "space is for young people," and watching the competition may inspire them to become even more interested in the universe.

Professor Uhl also hopes that students participating in the European Rover Challenge will eventually create startups in Poland. He also noted that currently, 14 of the 18 professors at the Faculty of Space Technology are from abroad.

Last year, the European Rover Challenge was won by the FHNW Rover Team from Switzerland. The European Rover Challenge has been held in Krakow since last year.

The European Rover Challenge 2025 is organized by the European Space Foundation. The host is the AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków. The project is financed by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. Event partners include the Marshal's Office of the Małopolska Voivodeship and the City of Kraków.

The Science in Poland portal has become the media patron of the European Rover Challenge 2025. (PAP)

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