Out of this world: How two groups of JKUAT students built a Mars rover

KUAT Vulcan Mars Rover team’s prototype Mars rover undergoes field testing at the institution in Juja, Kiambu County, on September 3, 2026. The rover is designed to navigate rough terrain as part of the students’ efforts to develop technology for space exploration and engineering competitions.

On August 15, 2026, eight Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) students refreshed an online scoreboard and saw their name at the top. They had just won the Launch Stage Final of the Cars4Mars African Rover Challenge, a continent-wide robotics competition that asks university students to design a working Mars rover prototype.

A Mars rover is a remote-controlled robotic vehicle usually used by America’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to explore the planet’s surface.