Teenage Engineers Take on NASA in Annual Invention Challenge
In a creative showdown, students from across Los Angeles and Orange counties demonstrated their ingenuity at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's annual Invention Challenge. The event, now in its 26th year, brings together teams of middle and high school students to compete with their own hand-built contraptions.
The challenge, dubbed the "Bucket Brigade Contest," required teams to design devices that could transport 2 gallons of water from a holding reservoir into a bucket approximately 16 feet away within a 60-second time frame. The twist? A long list of rules and regulations had to be satisfied along the way.
Eighteen student teams took part in the competition, with Arcadia High School's Team Still Water emerging as the top achiever, completing the task in just 6.45 seconds. Mission Viejo High's Team Senior Citizens finished a close second, while the Samo Seals from Santa Monica High came in third.
A select group of teams from outside the region were also invited to participate, including four schools from Colorado and Massachusetts, as well as one team comprising professional engineers. The "Trial and Error Engineering" team, led by retired JPL engineer Alan DeVault, once again took top honors, while the Pioneer Charter School of Science's "Team 6" finished second.
Judges praised several teams for their unique approaches, including Team Clankers from Mission Viejo High, which was deemed the most artistic, and Team 6, whose unconventional design earned them the title of most unusual. Meanwhile, Team Winning Engineering Team (WET) from Temple City High took home the award for most creative.
The event was made possible by the support of dozens of JPL volunteers, including Fire Chief Dave Dollarhide, who lent his expertise as a guest judge to ensure the competition remained fair and fun.
In a creative showdown, students from across Los Angeles and Orange counties demonstrated their ingenuity at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's annual Invention Challenge. The event, now in its 26th year, brings together teams of middle and high school students to compete with their own hand-built contraptions.
The challenge, dubbed the "Bucket Brigade Contest," required teams to design devices that could transport 2 gallons of water from a holding reservoir into a bucket approximately 16 feet away within a 60-second time frame. The twist? A long list of rules and regulations had to be satisfied along the way.
Eighteen student teams took part in the competition, with Arcadia High School's Team Still Water emerging as the top achiever, completing the task in just 6.45 seconds. Mission Viejo High's Team Senior Citizens finished a close second, while the Samo Seals from Santa Monica High came in third.
A select group of teams from outside the region were also invited to participate, including four schools from Colorado and Massachusetts, as well as one team comprising professional engineers. The "Trial and Error Engineering" team, led by retired JPL engineer Alan DeVault, once again took top honors, while the Pioneer Charter School of Science's "Team 6" finished second.
Judges praised several teams for their unique approaches, including Team Clankers from Mission Viejo High, which was deemed the most artistic, and Team 6, whose unconventional design earned them the title of most unusual. Meanwhile, Team Winning Engineering Team (WET) from Temple City High took home the award for most creative.
The event was made possible by the support of dozens of JPL volunteers, including Fire Chief Dave Dollarhide, who lent his expertise as a guest judge to ensure the competition remained fair and fun.
? But seriously, it's amazing to see how much talent and enthusiasm there is among these students.
i mean, think about it - they're basically redefining what's possible in engineering and innovation, on their own terms 
no restrictions, no boundaries, just pure creativity and problem-solving skills. it's inspiring to see them push the limits of what's thought possible.
. And let's be real, who doesn't love watching a team of 6th graders frantically building a contraption to get water into a bucket in under 60 seconds? It's like a mini Olympics of engineering 
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. But, let's be real, it'd be even cooler if we could watch some actual footage or streams of the competition online 
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It's cool that teams got creative and made some pretty wild contraptions, but at the end of the day, it's just water being transported... 
Like, who cares if it takes 6.45 seconds or not? 
On the other hand, I love that it's giving these kids a chance to learn from experienced engineers like Alan DeVault and make some real connections in their field of study... 
But honestly, can't we just make it more challenging? 
? It's like they're tiny little MacGyvers or something 
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! I mean, who needs practice when you can just nail it on the first try 
. But for real, I love how JPL encourages these young engineers to get creative and think outside the box (or bucket, in this case) 
. Can't wait to see what they do next!
! I mean, can you believe they designed their own contraptions from scratch and competed against each other in a challenge that's basically like something out of a sci-fi movie? 
. And who can blame them? The whole event was made possible by the generosity of JPL volunteers, which just goes to show that there are a lot of good people out there willing to give back to their communities 
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Is it their meticulous planning and execution? Or is it their willingness to adapt and adjust on the fly when things didn't go according to plan? 
I'm literally so impressed by these teens 
. And can we talk about how cool it is that they even got to participate in a real NASA challenge 
?! The fact that some of them are from Colorado and Massachusetts already means they're on another level 
. I mean, what's next? Are they gonna get picked by SpaceX or something?! 
. And Team Clankers' artistic approach was everything 
. Anyways, I'm already hyped for next year's challenge 
. Kudos to JPL for organizing this awesome event and giving back to the community – it's so cool that they're fostering innovation and STEM skills in our region 
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