<p>WASHINGTON, Sept. 7, 2012 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA Television will broadcast live the virtual kickoff ceremony of the 2012 Zero Robotics High School Tournament beginning at 1 p.m. EDT, Saturday, Sept. 8.</p><p>(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO)</p><p>Zero Robotics challenges teams of high school students to write their own algorithms to fly the Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites, or SPHERES. The bowling ball-sized spherical satellites are used to test telerobotics and maneuvers for spacecraft performing autonomous flight, including rendezvous and docking. Three of these satellites fly aboard the International Space Station. Each is self-contained with power, propulsion, computing and navigation equipment.</p><p>The kickoff will include welcoming talks from each of the tournament's sponsors, including NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. Alvar Saenz-Otero, associate director of the Space Systems Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), will announce details of this year's specific challenge that students will work to overcome in their software development.</p><p><a href="http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/07/4798121/nasa-tv-airs-live-kickoff-of-2012.html">Keep reading...</a></p>