NASA on Sunday announced a $1 million Moon Base Student Challenge for U.S. high school and post-secondary teams, saying it opened the contest during a MAX POWER event at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida¹.

The agency said student teams are invited to contribute designs for a Moon Base it is developing near the lunar South Pole, where it says astronauts would live, work and explore¹.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the agency wants students who will think creatively, work as a team, and take on real problems tied to NASA’s future on the Moon¹.

Carlos García-Galán, manager of the Moon Base Program, said the agency wants student ideas as it designs foundations of the base, adding that a permanent lunar presence is intended to pave the way for future crewed missions to Mars¹.

The multiphase challenge covers six categories: power generation and storage, construction, life-support systems, surface mobility, communications networks, and astronaut safety¹.

NASA said participants must register through the NASA STEM Gateway and that registration is open until Jan. 25, 2027¹.

Elaine Ho, associate administrator for the Office of STEM Engagement at NASA Headquarters, said students’ perspectives are key to envisioning a future away from Earth¹.

The agency said deliverables are meant to reflect industry skills such as trade studies, concept proposals and stakeholder briefings, and that prior specialized engineering experience is not required¹.

NASA said the Office of STEM Engagement designed the challenge with the Moon Base Program, and that the Institute of Competition Sciences administers it through a contract with the NASA Center of Excellence for Collaborative Innovation in the Research and Technology Mission Directorate¹.

Complete rules, eligibility and details are posted at moonbasechallenge.org, NASA said¹.

Sources

1. NASANASA Announces $1 Million to Students for Moon Base Challenge10:26 AM

Read the original at NASA ↗