General Info

Night at the Museum is a two day VEX Robotics Competition (VRC) Signature Event at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA.  60 high school teams from around the world will compete for top honors in the VRC and three teams will qualify for the VRC World Championship in April. Teams can participate in this event by qualifying for the tournament by winning the Excellence Award, Tournament Champions, Design Award, or Robot Skills Champion Award at a local event by January 10th, 2020.  If your team has qualified based on the above mentioned criteria and they would like to be considered for entry into the event, please add the team to the waitlist.  Automatic invites will not be sent out by RobotEvents so please add yourself to the waitlist to be considered.  There is a max of 2 teams per organization.

Join us at the museum to have a unique, high quality VRC Tower Takeover Competition where teams will practice on fields under the thrusters of the space shuttle Discovery. Competition and skills fields will be back-dropped by the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a retired reconnaissance aircraft used through the Cold War. Teams will have eight qualification matches to earn a top spot as alliance captain going into the best of 1 elimination round. 

The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is located in Chantilly, Virginia; adjacent to Washington Dulles international Airport. It is the second location for the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and displays thousands of artifacts that tell the story of aviation and space exploration, including the SR-71 Blackbird. The Center offers ample parking (fees apply), as well as parking for charter buses.  Public bus service is provided by Fairfax Connector’s 983 route, which has stops at the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station (40-minute ride) and Dulles Airport (10-minute ride).  Schedules and route information at fairfaxconnector.com.

Washington Dulles International Airport services over 130 domestic and international destinations by 40 airlines. Information at flydulles.com. There is a large variety of hotels in the Dulles Airport area. Many offer complimentary shuttle service to the airport and/or the Udvar-Hazy Center.

Washington, DC is approximately 30 miles from the Udvar-Hazy Center. Public transportation is available from Dulles via the DC Metro 5A bus. Rail service is provided from the Wiehle-Reston East metro station (approx. 45 minutes to the National Mall). Visit https://www.wmata.com/ for trip planning assistance.

Things to Do. The DC/Northern Virginia area has a lot of options for visitors. Check these resources for information on sights, dining, lodging, and events.

• Visit Fairfax
• Visit Loudoun
• Destination DC

Agenda

UPDATED : 11/26/2019

Volunteer

We are in need of Judges, Computer Operators and General Assistants.  We will have training available on-site for these positions.  All volunteers will receive meals, snacks and a free shirt.  To volunteer, visit volunteer.novastem.us/vexnightatthemuseum. 

Emergency/Bad Weather Policy

We will update any cancellations on our facebook page: www.facebook.com/NOVAsystemic.  In the event of bad weather we will attempt to modify the event to fit within this weekend.  In the event of a complete cancellation details will be emailed to teams on how to proceed.

Refund Policy

Partial refunds of $150 will be issued up to January 1, 2020. Any teams cancelling beyond this date or not showing for the event will not receive a refund. 

Travel Info

The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is located in Chantilly, Virginia; adjacent to Washington Dulles international Airport. It is the second location for the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and displays thousands of artifacts that tell the story of aviation and space exploration, including the SR-71 Blackbird. The Center offers ample parking (fees apply), as well as parking for charter buses.  Public bus service is provided by Fairfax Connector’s 983 route, which has stops at the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station (40-minute ride) and Dulles Airport (10-minute ride).  Schedules and route information at fairfaxconnector.com.

Washington Dulles International Airport services over 130 domestic and international destinations by 40 airlines. Information at flydulles.com. There is a large variety of hotels in the Dulles Airport area. Many offer complimentary shuttle service to the airport and/or the Udvar-Hazy Center.

Washington, DC is approximately 30 miles from the Udvar-Hazy Center. Public transportation is available from Dulles via the DC Metro 5A bus. Rail service is provided from the Wiehle-Reston East metro station (approx. 45 minutes to the National Mall). Visit https://www.wmata.com/ for trip planning assistance.

Things to Do. The DC/Northern Virginia area has a lot of options for visitors. Check these resources for information on sights, dining, lodging, and events.

• Visit Fairfax
• Visit Loudoun
• Destination DC

Webcast

To watch the event online, visit:  livestream.novastem.us/natm.  

Team Survey - December

This survey was sent to teams on 12/20/19 to help us plan for the event:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuIeimN447nIDfySyaKMVtMdj8JuOXTfSq8sc4lFrzaOx19g/viewform?usp=sf_link

We will be adding a logistics tab in January to answer questions.

Promo Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgqTDEUhDXY&t=17s. 

Logistics (Email sent 1/16/2020)

Night at the Museum will held Friday, January 31st and Saturday, February 1st, 2020 at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA (14390 Air and Space Museum Parkway, Chantilly, VA 20151). The teams will practice on fields under the thrusters of the space shuttle Discovery. Competition and skills fields will be back-dropped by the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a retired reconnaissance aircraft used through the Cold War. Teams will have nine qualification matches to earn a top spot as alliance captain going into the best of 1 elimination rounds with a best of 3 finals.

GENERAL INFO

On Friday, the Museum doors will open at 10:00 AM for check-in and inspection, you must check-in by noon. Practice fields will also open at that time. Parking at the Museum is available for $15/day, and we will provide 2 free vouchers during check-in. You pay parking upon leaving the venue. You have up to 30 minutes to unload equipment on the Museum's loop. Power tools (Dremel/cutting tools, etc.) are not allowed in the Museum, please don't bring any. We'll have hand tools available for all teams to use. Opening Ceremonies will be held Friday at 1:45 PM and we'll kick off the event at 2:30 PM with a round of practice matches. Qualification matches start at 3:30 PM going until 11:00 PM. On Saturday, doors will open at 9:00 AM. Please arrive before the general public can enter at 10am. A few notes:

• 60 teams, 1 division, about 1 match per hour, 9 matches per team
• Seating is available at the fields, but is limited. There are benches throughout the museum.
• Live video and rankings will be distributed to audience, practice fields and pit areas in the museum.
• Livestream will be dependent on the museum, our 1st test failed their firewall. If they can get us on the network it will be here: http://livestream.novastem.us/natm
• Please remember to secure valuables, the pit area is not secure.
• If using Uber/Lift etc. drop off at museum is free if exiting within 30 minutes.

FOOD Plan

• Friday Lunch - is on your own.

• • The only option in the museum is McDonald's, it has an expanded menu from a normal McDonald's menu. Check-in is between 10am and 12pm. We recommend you plan your lunch before entering the museum.

• Friday Dinner - We will provide Chick-fil-A Friday night at 5-5:30pm dinner at no cost to teams.

• • Please contact jalgarin@nvcc.edu to reserve a meal for food allergies. (Choices: Market Salad no chicken, Kale Side Salad, Fruit Cup, Spicy Southwest Salad with or without chicken). There will be a lunch voucher for the McDonald's (in the museum) on Saturday. 

• Friday Evening – We will provide an evening snack.
• Saturday Lunch – We will provide McDonald’s meal vouchers, 1 per team member including coaches.
• Saturday Dinner is on your own.

Per Museum rules, food and drink other than bottled water are not permitted inside, and outside food is also not permitted. Groups who bring food are encouraged to eat on their buses in the parking lot or use the picnic tables outside the Museum. Food and Water is not allowed on the museum floor. You can keep neatly in pit area.

ENTERTAINMENT

• The Museum – Please check it out during your stay.
• GooseChase Scavenger Hunt, there is a prize for the winners.
• Virtual Reality Rides, We’re trying to get a voucher per team.

HOTELS AND TRANSPORTATION

There are over 60 hotels near the Museum given that is close to the Washington-Dulles International Airport. At this moment, we do not have group rates for teams. Some hotels may offer shuttles to the Museum, but please check first with your individual hotel. Rideshare services are also available. Rental cars are definitely a good option.

STUDENT AND COACH COUNT

We sent a survey at the winter break to count students and coaches. After reviewing the data, we will cap teams with 10 participants total with a 2 coach maximum in regards to our planning for food and badges for the team. For additional individuals, attendance is free, but additional food or team badges will not be provided.

If you didn’t respond to the survey we are planning on 5 students and 1 coach per team.

World Qualifications

The following awards will qualify for the 2020 VEX World Championship:

• 1 Excellence Award Winner
• 2 Tournament Champions

If a team double qualifies, the Robot Skills Champion or next highest unqualified skills team will receive the Worlds invitation.