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NASA's Prize Program for the
Citizen Inventor
In December 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright, two bicycle mechanics working with no government support, initiated the age of powered flight with their success at Kitty Hawk. NASAs Prize Program honors the spirit of the Wright Brothers and other independent inventors by acknowledging the centennial of the first powered flight in 2003. The NASA Centennial Challenges program also recognizes that the rapid and dramatic progress in aeronautics in the early years of the first century of flight was often driven by prize competitions.
To see more about the
Centennial of Flight go to:
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/
improvingflight/cof_main.html
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The Centennial Challenges seek to:
- Drive progress in aerospace technology of value to NASA's missions
- Encourage the participation of independent teams, individual inventors, student groups and private companies of all sizes in aerospace research and development
- Find the most innovative solutions to technical challenges through competition and cooperation
RESULTS! + Read More
LUNAR LANDER CHALLENGE
October 24-25, 2008
Las Cruces International Airport, New Mexico
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Seven Current Challenges
Teams design and build robotic machines to excavate simulated lunar soil. Excavating soil will be an important part of any construction projects or processing of natural resources on the Moon. NASA is looking for new ideas for excavation techniques that do not require excessively heavy machines or large amounts of power.
The California Space Education and Workforce Institute manages this challenge for NASA. You can find out more about the Lunar Regolith Excavation challenge at their website: http://regolith.csewi.org/ (non-NASA link)
Teams demonstrate the performance of light aircraft that incorporate improvements to maximize fuel efficiency, reduce noise and improve safety. These innovations are intended to result in aircraft with less negative impacts on the environment. Some of these new features might be applied in the full range of private, commercial and military aircraft of the future. Awards totaling $250,000 were made in the 2007 competition. The 2008 event will be held in August in Santa Rosa, California.
The Comparative Aircraft Flight Efficiency (CAFE) Foundation manages this challenge for NASA. You can read more about the competition at their website: http://cafefoundation.org/v2/pav_home.php (non-NASA link)
Locations of Competitors, Competitions and Organizers
Future NASA Prizes
Pending future funding, prizes are envisioned for new Challenges to support NASA Missions and to benefit the Nation.
For example:
- Communications
- Alternative Energy
- Lunar Science
- Long-duration Spaceflight, radiation shielding, life support
- Clean, quiet aircraft
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