Beijing Daily recently reported that the 2024 International SeaPerch Challenge Global Finals were held at the University of Maryland, USA, from May 31 to June 1 local time. Four teams composed of middle schools such as Beihang University Experimental School, Beijing Bayi School, High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China (Hangtiancheng Campus), Beijing No. 35 High School, and Guangdong Experimental High School represented China in the competition. Among them, the "Rongzhen Dream Team" won the "Real World Innovation Research Award". This is the first time a Chinese youth representative team has won an award in this event, and the Chinese participating teams have therefore received high attention from participants from various countries.
Hail as the "Olympics" of underwater unmanned systems, the International Youth Unmanned System Competition Challenge was initiated by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). It is also recognized in the industry as the highest level event in the field of underwater robots and hailed as the "World Cup" in the field of underwater robots. Every year, 250,000 teenagers from all over the world participate. "SeaPerch" is an innovative STEM education program for primary and secondary schools centered on underwater robots and covering an international marine characteristic competition system and curriculum. The university group has wide participation from students from world-renowned universities such as MIT, Cornell University, Imperial College London, and the National University of Singapore. In 2018 and 2019, Harbin Engineering University represented China in the global finals of the university group of this event and won the championship for two consecutive years, breaking the monopoly of North American universities on this award for nearly 20 years.
The 2024 "SeaPerch" Global Finals for primary and secondary schools attracted 176 teams from countries and regions such as the United States, China, the UAE, New Zealand, Kuwait, and Egypt, with more than 1,500 people shortlisted for the competition. The Chinese representative team consisted of 4 teams of 24 junior and senior high school students from schools such as RDFZ Hangtiancheng School, Beijing Bayi School, Beihang University Affiliated Experimental School, Beijing No. 35 High School, and Guangdong Experimental High School. They competed on the same stage with tech teenagers from around the world dedicated to the sustainable development of the ocean and hydrosphere.
Shen Yueran, a second-year junior high school student at Bayi School, started contacting the "SeaPerch" project in the fourth grade of primary school. "Underwater robots trained my engineering design thinking and operational ability." Shen Yueran said that as one of the first batch of Chinese middle school students to go abroad to participate in the international SeaPerch Challenge, she felt very honored. "During the competition, the team communicated with team members from various countries and brought the traditional Chinese game Touhu (Pitch-pot) to the arena."
The "SeaPerch" International Youth Unmanned System Competition Challenge has entered China and been held in Beijing since 2021, and has been held for three consecutive years so far. This year, nearly 4,000 students from more than 10 provinces and cities across the country participated, with the scale and scope expanding year by year. During the competition, the team had to collaborate to complete challenge tasks including speed challenges, mission challenges, technical design reports, and defense demonstrations.
Ma Juanjuan, Head of the Expert Group of the Preparatory Committee, stated that promoting and holding the underwater unmanned system competition challenge in China and organizing teams to participate in international competitions aims to further improve the scientific and technological literacy of Chinese youth.
The "SeaPerch Challenge" in the China region is an activity integrating technological imagination, innovation, and creation, guided by the National Center for Science and Technology Communication and hosted by the Chinese Institute of Electronics and the Chinese Society of Oceanography. To promote science popularization in Hong Kong and Macau and promote exchanges and cooperation between Hong Kong, Macau, and the mainland, the Hong Kong Science Popularization and Science Fiction Academy (HKSPSF) was commissioned by the National Organizing Committee of the SeaPerch Challenge to host the SeaPerch Challenge (Hong Kong and Macau Selection) (hereinafter referred to as the Hong Kong and Macau Selection) in the Hong Kong and Macau region. This Hong Kong and Macau Selection has been included in the white list competitions designated by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, and outstanding winners will be recommended to represent the "Hong Kong and Macau Representative Team" to participate in the National Finals aimed at August 2024. The "Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Youth Celebration of Return Exchange Competition" was held at the same time, inviting teams from cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to come to Hong Kong for science and technology exchange activities to jointly celebrate the 27th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland.