Centennial Challenges
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NASA's Centennial Challenges are designed to promote technical innovation through a novel program of prize competitions. The program is designed to tap the nation's and world's ingenuity to make revolutionary advances to support the NASA Vision for Space Exploration.
First Centennial Challenges
On March 23, 2005 NASA announced the first Centennial Challenge. This challenge is mananged by the Spaceward Foundation with prizes totaling $400,000 for two categories of competitions:
- The Tether Challenge centers on the creation of a material that combines light weight and incredible strength. Under this challenge, teams will develop high strength materials that will be stretched in a head-to-head competition to see which tether is strongest.
- The Beam Power Challenge focuses on the development of wireless power technologies for a wide range of exploration purposes, such as human lunar exploration and long-duration Mars reconnaissance. In this challenge, teams will develop wireless power transmission systems, including transmitters and receivers, to power robotic climbers to lift the greatest weight possible to the top of a 50-meter cable in under three minutes.
Current Centennial Challenges
The current (as of April 2007) NASA Centennial Challenges are: [1]
| Challenge Date | Challenge Name | Purse | Allied Organization |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 2-3, 2007 | 2007 Astronaut Glove Challenge | $250K | Volanz Aerospace Inc./Spaceflight America |
| May 11-12, 2007 | 2007 Regolith Excavation Challenge | $250K | California Space Education & Workforce Institute (CSEWI) |
| Aug 4-12, 2007 | Personal Air Vehicle Challenge | $250K | CAFE Foundation |
| Oct 2007 | 2007 Beam Power Challenge | $500K | The Spaceward Foundation |
| Oct 2007 | 2007 Tether Challenge | $500K | The Spaceward Foundation |
| Oct 2007 | Lunar Lander Challenge | $2M | The X PRIZE Foundation |
| Expires Jun 1, 2008 | Moon Regolith Oxygen (MoonROx) Challenge | $250K | California Space Education & Workforce Institute (CSEWI) |
Past Challenges
The current (as of April 2007) NASA Centennial Challenges are: [2]
| Challenge Date | Challenge Name | WinmerPurse | Allied Organization |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 21-23, 2005 | 2005 Beam Power Challenge | None/$50K purse combined with 2006 | The Spaceward Foundation |
| Oct 21-23, 2005 | 2005 Tether Challenge | None/$50K purse combined with 2006 | The Spaceward Foundation |
| Oct 20-21, 2006 | 2006 Beam Power Challenge | None/$200K | The Spaceward Foundation |
| Oct 20-21, 2006 | 2006 Tether Challenge | None/$200K | The Spaceward Foundation |
| Oct 20-21, 2006 | Lunar Lander Challenge | None/$2M | The X PRIZE Foundation |
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