UE Students to Compete in NASA's Moonbuggy Race April 13-14
April 12, 2007

Nine University of Evansville students leave Friday (April 13) to compete in the 14th annual Great Moonbuggy Race at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Watch the news reports tonight on FOX 7, WFIE-Ch. 14; or WEHT-Ch. 25 (and the Evansville Courier & Press tomorrow to read more about the competition!)

The UE students have worked to build the moonbuggy for the past several months. The human-powered buggy must be no wider than four feet, and be able to fit into a container that is 4 x 4 x 4 foot, that can be carried to the starting line by the two riders and assembled quickly. At the race, the buggy must traverse a one-half mile course with simulated lunar conditions – rough surfaces, loose gravel, craters, etc… -- and make it to the finish line in the quickest time. Last year's vehicle placed second in the competition. Sixty teams will compete in this year’s race with entries from the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada and Germany. (Pictured to the right: Senior Lance Hawkins drives the buggy, with Junior Ben Sitzman sitting and peddling directly behind him)

UE students involved in this project include:

• Lance Hawkins, mechanical engineering senior from Evansville (team leader the past two years)
• Shawn Hawkins, mechanical engineering junior from Evansville
• Grant Johanningsmeier, mechanical engineering junior from Vincennes
• Jesse Kahle, mechanical engineering junior from Huntingburg
• Ashley Lievers, mechanical engineering junior from Elizabethtown, IL
• James McDaniel, mechanical engineering junior from Fulton, MO
• Ben Sitzman, mechanical engineering junior from Ferdinand
• Jaclyn Kern, business administration/marketing junior from Dale
• Andrea Sonnenschein, sports studies/mass communication junior from Poy Sippi, WI

"The students are challenged to design and build their own version of a lunar rover and bring it to Huntsville to race against the clock," said Frank Six, university affairs officer with the Marshall Center's Academic Affairs Office. "In the process of preparing for this exciting event, they learn valuable lessons in science, technology, engineering and math in a real-world situation. Events like the Great Moonbuggy Race help NASA foster learning environments that inspire young people to set their sights on venturing to the moon, Mars and beyond."

The race is inspired by the lunar rover vehicles astronauts drove on the moon during the three final Apollo missions in the 1970s. The original lunar rovers were designed and tested by engineers at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. The first Great Moonbuggy Race was run in 1994, commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing. Eight college teams participated that first year, and in 1996 the race was expanded to include high school teams.