Mars Missions Bring Cybersecurity to Life at Day of Cyber

A missing Mars rover, a mysterious transmission, and a research colony in need of rescue brought nearly 300 middle and high school students and educators to Norwich University on Wednesday, Oct. 7, for Day of Cyber 2026.

Through two simulated Mars missions, students became investigators, builders and problem-solvers, working together to recover information, protect systems and complete their assignments. Held during Cybersecurity Awareness Month and World Space Week, the event carried the theme “Two Programs. One Mission. A Brighter Tomorrow.”

“As our world becomes increasingly dependent on space-based technologies, cybersecurity is no longer confined to the networks and systems here on Earth,” says Kristin Hayes, lecturer in cybersecurity in Norwich’s Senator Patrick Leahy School of Cybersecurity and Advanced Computing.

Recovering a Lost Rover

In Mack Hall, high school students participated in Mission to Mars: The Lost Rover, joining a cyber response team after the fictional OzoBot-9000 rover lost contact during its descent to Mars.

Students examined telemetry, the data transmitted by the rover, recovered missing operational logs, decoded a Chinese-language transmission using a mini-dictionary and tackled a mission-critical life-support challenge.

Chinese language instructors from Norwich’s Department of Global Humanities helped develop the decoding activity, demonstrating how language and technology can work together to solve problems. Across the challenges, students practiced interpreting evidence, communicating with teammates and deciding what to do next.

Answering a Call for Help on Mars

At Plumley Armory, middle school students entered Operation Red Horizon: Cyber Rescue on Mars, responding to a simulated emergency at the HELIOS-1819 research colony.

Their mission took them through four stations: using drones to assess the environment, building a solar-powered rover, gaining authenticated access to a Mission Control status panel, and completing a final coding challenge with an autonomous Ozobot EVO robot.

Each activity connected a practical task to the larger rescue mission, encouraging students to ask questions, test ideas and work through obstacles together.

The experience also extended to Sabine Field, where drones became part of the mission. Students enjoyed time with the Norwich football team, met campus therapy dogs and received a surprise visit from Norwich’s mascot, Alden Partridge.

Discovering Possibilities Together

More than 40 Norwich students from the Cyber Leader Development Program volunteered throughout the event, welcoming visiting students and supporting their activities. The day offered younger learners an opportunity to meet college students, explore campus and imagine their own futures in cybersecurity, digital forensics, technology and related fields.

Day of Cyber was supported by the Senator Patrick Leahy School of Cybersecurity and Advanced Computing, Norwich Cyber Institute, Department of Global Humanities, and Center for Cybersecurity and Forensics Education and Research, with contributions from faculty and staff across the University.

The day’s guiding words: Explore. Solve. Defend. These words came to life through every mission. The setting was Mars, but the skills students practiced — curiosity, communication, creative thinking and teamwork — have a place in their classrooms today and their futures tomorrow.