Chantilly Academy students will be competing against 1,500 students from 63 high schools in the NASA/VCU Regional Robotics Competition held March 4-6 in Richmond.
The students built a robot as part of a six-week project in their engineering/physics class at Chantilly Academy.
"The goal is to give as many avenues to explore engineering as possible," said instructor Marty Rothwell.
The competition is an annual event that challenges high school students, working with mentors, to design and build a robot as a solution to a technical, engineering problem which changes every year. This year, robots are designed to perform a number of tasks as they participate in "FIRST Frenzy."
The program celebrates creativity, sportsmanship, team spirit, technology, Web site design and animation submission.
Several teams will also attend the finals held April 15-17 at The Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Ga. The robotics competition is produced by FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), a non-profit organization dedicated to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people, their schools and their communities.
Local teams from Chantilly High, Commonwealth Governor's School, Eleanor Roosevelt High, George Mason High, Herndon High, James Madison High and Oakton High will be competing.