Malaysian Space Agency (MYSA) through the 6th Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Kibo-RPC) 2025 is looking for a team to represent Malaysia in the mission to help astronauts to find a treasure in Kibo module on the International Space Station (ISS) that was hidden by a space pirate IB-1 (Int-Ball the First) and clues are given from a treasure map from an astronaut. Good luck!
The Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Kibo-RPC) is an educational program organized under the “Asian Beneficial Collaboration through Kibo Utilization” (Kibo-ABC) initiative of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF) organized by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan, and space agency partners in the Asia-Pacific regions. Students are challenged to solve complex problems onboard the International Space Station (ISS) by programming free-flying robots (Astrobee) to complete various assigned tasks.
Participants will obtain and test programming skills to solve various problems by moving free-flying robots (Astrobee and Int-Ball) in a simulation environment. Preliminary rounds (National competition) will be held and the selected teams will run their programs on the free-flying robots in the final round at the Japanese Experiment Module (Kibo) aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Through this experience, students will learn the techniques and methods involved in programming and robotics, while boosting their interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) by moving actual robots on the ISS. Students will also learn about the importance of bridging the gap between simulation and reality. It is hoped that, by getting the opportunity to collaborate alongside professional scientists and engineers, students will be inspired to develop educational and professional goals that they only dreamed of before!
The space pirate IB-1 (Int-Ball the First) has hidden the space treasures he collected during his short life somewhere on the International Space Station “Kibo”.
The astronaut knows clues to find the real treasure hidden by IB-1, but the exact location is unknown.
However, previous research has identified several possible sites where the treasure may be hidden, and landmarks have been found nearby.
Now, you will take control of the Astrobee and together we will search for IB-1’s hidden treasure.
First, to find the treasure, the participants must command the Astrobee around the potential sites by following the landmarks.
Be careful that fake treasures may be scattered among them.
After visiting all the candidate sites, use the clues that the astronaut has to find the real treasure, return to the correct location and get the treasure!
The path you take to the treasure is up to you.
Grab the treasure hidden by the Space Pirate IB-1 before your rivals find it!
1. Competition is open to students (Malaysian citizens) between 15 to 28 years old who are currently enrolled at the same school, college or university;
2. The participants must form a team which comprises between three (3) to five (5) members, and must appoint one member as a team leader;
3. Only team registration by team leader is allowed (NO individual registration) and each member can only join one team;
4. Participating teams SHALL NOT be able to add new or change their team members a week before the Preliminary Round.
Kindly read through the “6th Kibo Robot Programming Challenge Guidebook” before filling out this form.
If your application is accepted, you will receive an email containing your log-in ID and password from Kibo-RPC Point of Contact (POC) to enable you to access JAXA’s web-based simulator and the participants’ page on the Kibo-RPC site.
The POC will review your information and issue an ID and password to access the members-only page and send it to your email address. Please note that it will take approximately 3 working days to issue your ID and password.
If you haven’t received your ID notification email after 3 working days, kindly email to us at krpc@mysa.gov.my
The application deadline is 12 MAY 2025 at 22:59 MYT / 10:59 pm.
Please visit JAXA Kibo-RPC Web Page for more details.
