SPROS IRC is a space robotics engineering competition. It challenges university students to conceptualise, design, develop and operate an astronaut-assistive next-generation space Rover and perform specific missions in Mars simulated conditions.
The objective of the competition is to provide students with a real-world interdisciplinary engineering experience, combining practical engineering skills with soft skills, including business planning and project management.
Commencing this year, teams will get the opportunity to perform autonomous operations in Delivery Mission.
Jan 28- Feb 2, 2026
Venue: Udupi,Karnataka, India
The IRC 2026 Finals will be performed within a specially designed 20,000 square meter simulated landscape called Sproscape. It will be the world’s largest arena of its kind.
Astrobiology Expedition: The rover acts as a Mobile Science Laboratory to collect samples and perform analysis to seek signs of life.
Instrument Deployment and Maintenance Operation: The rovers traverses a short distance to operate on a mock-up instrument panel to perform a set of precise operations.
Reconnaissance and Delivery Operation: The rover reconnaissance an area to search, locate, pick up, and deliver objects to specific locations.
Project Implementation and Management Assessment: PIMA will have one-to-one interaction between the teams and the judges about their rover development.
Any changes in the dates or mode of the competition due to any circumstances shall be communicated to the teams.
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Any issues not covered by these published FAQs will be addressed on a case-by-case basis by the IRC officials. If there is a discrepancy, the Rulebook will take precedence over FAQs.
Early Bird Offer: Teams will receive a discount of 20 USD on the participation fee for the Finals, if they register and pay for the competition before a specific deadline, which is September 28, 2025.
There will be an initial application fee and participation fee.
Application Fee - 195 USD. It will be paid by the teams after completing the registration form.
Participation Fee - 329 USD. It will be paid by the teams which qualify for the IRC Finals. Application fee is non-refundable and non-adjustable. However, if the competition doesn't take place in the on-site mode then Participation fee will be adjusted to the next edition of the competition.
No. There is no limit to the number of teams that can register for IRC 2026. But only top 20 ranked teams in System Design and Development Review (SDDR) and 5 wildcard entry teams will be invited to compete in the on-site event.
The maximum allowable length and width of the rover are 1.5m and 1.2m, respectively.
There is no vertical height limit for IRC 2025. If the rover is oversized during a mission, the
team will be charged a penalty of 20% of the points scored during that mission.
Yes. Teams are allowed to take interventions during the missions but there will be a penalty for each interventions.
The teams shall make One Rover. The Rover however may have swappable modules for carrying out different tasks. The modules shall be swapped by astronauts at the base station.
Feel free to reach out to us for queries related to rules and registration.