Thirty teams from across the province are gathering in St. John’s for a major robotics competition at the Holiday Inn.

This year, students from ages 9 to 18 are working on ways to address challenges in the field of archaeology using robotics.

The executive director of FIRST Robotics NL, Andrew Troke, says there are two separate categories – one for kids 9 to 14 using Lego and the other for kids 9 to 18 using traditional materials and motors.

Troke says the winners in each category then have the opportunity to represent the province in the FIRST Robotics World Championships in Houston, Texas in the spring.

The event gets underway at 8:45 tomorrow morning with the competitions beginning at 1:00. All events are free and open to the public.