URC News

The Mars Society Welcomes Honeybee Robotics as Sponsor for 2026 University Rover Challenge

December 22, 2025

The Mars Society is excited to welcome Honeybee Robotics as a sponsor of the 2026 University Rover Challenge.

Solving the Most Complex Problems: Honeybee Robotics, a Blue Origin Company, pursues bold ideas of the future. Is there life outside of Earth? How will humanity become an interplanetary species? These are questions Honeybee’s next-generation robotics are designed to answer. From mining to extraterrestrial infrastructure and mobility systems, we steadfastly pursue “the out of this world” to unlock the full potential of space for the betterment of Earth.

Honeybee specializes in the development of advanced robotic systems and technology solutions. Our focus is on creating innovative mechanisms and instruments for a wide range of applications, including space exploration, planetary science, and various terrestrial industries. Our expertise is in robotics for extreme harsh environments, which includes drilling and sample handling systems, robotic arms, mobility systems, deployment mechanisms and various custom solutions.

Honeybee Robotics is fully owned subsidiary of Blue Origin. Established in 1983, Honeybee Robotics is AS9100C certified, NASA-approved flight hardware supplier with extensive experience in flexible automation technologies, custom mechanisms, spacecraft electro-mechanical components, and robotic systems and subsystems for the aerospace industry. Honeybee Robotics has managed over 600 projects, from small research and development efforts under the SBIR program to larger efforts funded by various NASA programs and multi-million-dollar flight development efforts such as the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT), Icy Soil Acquisition Device (ISAD) for the Mars Phoenix, and Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Sample Manipulation System (SMS) for the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. Honeybee has launched over 1000 payloads to LEO and several to planetary surfaces. Three CLPS payloads— LISTER on Firefly’s Blue Ghost Lander, PlanetVac on FireFly, and TRIDENT on Intuitive Machine’s NOVA-C lander—were recently successfully operated on the lunar surface.

ProtoSpace Mfg Returns as Sponsor for 2026 University Rover Challenge

October 14, 2025

The Mars Society is proud to welcome ProtoSpace Mfg, the aerospace division of Protocase Inc., back as a major sponsor of the world-renowned University Rover Challenge! See the ProtoSpace Mfg announcement.

ProtoSpace Mfg is tackling one of the biggest barriers to innovation in aerospace and defense: long supplier lead times. Using its High Velocity Mass Customization model — a manufacturing system pioneered by the company — ProtoSpace Mfg delivers custom parts and enclosures in just 2–3 days. All while meeting the rigorous standards of AS9100, full traceability, and ITAR compliance. Like its sister company Protocase, ProtoSpace Mfg never requires a minimum order.

“We’re thrilled to return as presenting sponsor of the University Rover Challenge – and to be celebrating our 11th year of support,” says Allison MacDonald, Marketing Manager for ProtoSpace Mfg. “Innovation doesn’t move in a straight line. When students have to wait a long time to get their parts made, it stalls their progress and energy. By giving them fast access to the custom parts they need, we help them keep momentum — eliminating latency so their ideas can move forward at full velocity. We can’t wait to see what this year’s teams create.”

Instead of using critical design time and effort taking off-the-shelf enclosures, parts and components and modifying them to fit their Mars rover design, all teams registered in the 2026 University Rover Challenge can deploy ProtoSpace Mfg’s state-of-the-art manufacturing to get the exact parts they require.

URC2026 ProtoSpace Mfg Sponsorship

• Each URC team will receive $2,000 (USD) credit towards custom parts manufactured by ProtoSpace Mfg for its Mars rover.
  Note: This $2,000 (USD) credit will NOT count towards a team's rover budget limit

• All teams will receive a 50% discount on all custom parts manufactured beyond the $2,000 (USD) credit.

ProtoSpace Mfg also commits to providing in-kind manufacturing to the University Rover Challenge and Mars Society for its competition and infrastructure needs.

Check out The Journey of the University Rover Challenge, which documents the experience of URC teams who worked with Protocase during previous installments of the University Rover Challenge. 

How Teams Can Work With ProtoSpace Mfg

Once a team is registered for the 2026 University Rover Challenge, team leads or other team members can email urc@protospacemfg.com to be connected with their designated account manager.

To learn more about ProtoSpace Mfg custom sheet metal fabrication and CNC Machining, check out the company’s website, Proto Tech Tip videos and blog. Additional details regarding the ProtoSpace Mfg manufacturing process and important design guidelines will be available to teams in the coming weeks. 

2026 University Rover Challenge Rules Released

September 24, 2025

The University Rover Challenge is excited to announce the release of the rules for URC2026!

Click here for the URC2026 rules.

Registration for the 2025 competition will open on October 1, 2025, and will close on October 29, 2025. All registered teams will be required to submit a Preliminary Design Review package by December 3, 2025, and a System Acceptance Review milestone will follow on February 27, 2026. The top 36 teams will be selected to compete in the 2026 University Rover Challenge Finals, held May 27 - 30, 2026 at the renowned Mars Desert Research Station.

Teams and rovers will compete in 4 missions in 2026: the Science Mission, Delivery Mission, Equipment Servicing Mission, and Autonomous Navigation Mission.