Starpath’s lunar regolith Rover enters NASA’s 20-foot vacuum chamber for tests

One year after earning second place in NASA’s Break the Ice Lunar Challenge, Starpath tested its upgraded lunar regolith excavation and transport rover in the facility’s 20-foot thermal vacuum chamber.

The Break the Ice Lunar Challenge, part of NASA’s Centennial Challenges program, tasked competitors to design, construct, and demonstrate robotic systems capable of excavating and transporting lunar regolith, especially in icy, rocky environments such as those expected at the Moon’s south pole.

Starpath’s rover is a four-wheeled vehicle with a dual-drum barrel mechanism that can extend from the body of the robot, somewhat akin to crab claws, to scrape through hard, rough regolith without overly draining battery reserves. This design allows the machine to mine effectively while maintaining mobility under challenging conditions.

At NASA Marshall, the rover underwent trials in simulated lunar environmental conditions for approximately three days in August 2025. The NASA staff had prepared a concrete slab with rocky terrain as a testbed inside the chamber, over which the rover navigated and conducted excavation operations while collecting performance data.

Test data from the chamber will inform refinements in the rover’s mechanical systems, thermal management, power draw, and hardware durability under lunar conditions. The success or challenges of these tests will shape its readiness for future lunar missions.