NASA announced on Sunday the opening of its $1 million Moon Base Student Challenge during a MAX POWER event at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida (NASA). The competition invites student teams at U.S. high schools and post-secondary schools to contribute designs for the Moon Base (NASA). Participants must register through the NASA STEM Gateway, and registration is open until Jan. 25, 2027 (NASA).
The agency is building a Moon Base where astronauts will live, work, and explore at the lunar South Pole region (NASA). Student teams will design solutions across six categories: power generation and storage, construction, life-support systems, surface mobility, communications networks, and astronaut safety (NASA).
Key Facts
| Item | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Prize amount | $1 million | NASA |
| Who can enter | Student teams at U.S. high schools and post-secondary schools | NASA |
| Registration | NASA STEM Gateway, open until Jan. 25, 2027 | NASA |
| Categories | Six, from power generation and storage to astronaut safety | NASA |
| Administrator | Institute of Competition Sciences | NASA |
Timeline
- 2026-11-08: NASA announced the opening of the Moon Base Student Challenge at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex (NASA).
- 2027-01-25: Registration for the challenge is open until this date (NASA).
Details (as Reported)
NASA describes the effort as a multiphase challenge that supports its commitment to cultivating the technical skills of tomorrow’s aerospace workforce (NASA). The deliverables reflect industry skills such as trade studies, concept proposals, and stakeholder briefings (NASA). According to the agency, this lets participants across technical, vocational, and various academic tracks build career-relevant skills without prior specialized engineering or technical experience (NASA).
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said, “You do not have to wait until graduation to contribute” (NASA). Carlos García-Galán, manager of the Moon Base Program, described students as bringing “exactly the bold ideas that we’re looking for” (NASA). Elaine Ho, associate administrator for the Office of STEM Engagement at NASA Headquarters, called students “the next generation of explorers and innovators” (NASA).
The Office of STEM Engagement designed the challenge in collaboration with the Moon Base Program (NASA). The Institute of Competition Sciences administers it through a contract with the NASA Center of Excellence for Collaborative Innovation within the agency’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate (NASA).
What Is Not Yet Confirmed
The sources do not list open questions.