The Aptos High Robotics Team’s Nautilus 2.0 is a second generation ROV (Remotely 
Operated Vehicle) designed to withstand the volatile environments of deep-sea exploration and outer space. The ROV is built for extreme travel scenarios and equipped to collect data and deploy instrumentation in diverse environments from Jupiter’s Moons to under ice in Arctic Circle. The Nautilus 2.0 team applied a breadth of expertise to define the best ways to design, build and optimize the ROV to meet the stringent functionality requirements set out for this project.
Planning for the Nautilus 2.0 started in early August 2015 with an aggressive timeline and workflow to ensure the successful creation of the features and functionality needed to accomplish the proposed Outer Space and Deep Ocean Tasks. The goal of the Nautilus 2.0 is to provide a highly versatile ROV that enables the successful completion of the aforementioned exploration in a commercially viable fashion.
The Aptos High Robotics team came in first place in the recent Northern California regional competition winning the right to compete on an international stage at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas against teams from other states and countries.
http://www.marinetech.org/regional-contest-dates
The team consisted of the following Sophomore students from Aptos High:
- Michael Heffner– CEO/ Pneumatics
- Victoria Carvill– CFO/Co-pilot
- Monte deCastongrene– Engineering/Pilot
- Elliot Lovell– Design/Tether Management
- Tanisha Babic-Secretary/Programmer
- Krista Spurlock– Deck Management
- Norm Black- Mentor
Caption team photo L-R: Krista Spurlock, Elliot Lovell, Jackson Mace, Michael Heffner, Victoria Carvill, Tanisha Babic, Monte deCastrongrene