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Centennial Challenges
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Image of Wright Brothers Plane

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. NASA’s 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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Centennial Challenges
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
image of plane landing, runway and people in a competition for a moon glove



Seven Current Challenges

Lunar Regolith Excavation

Date: August 2-3, 2008
Location: San Luis Obispo, CA
2008 Purse $750K
+ Read More
 
csewi logo
 

Managed by:
California Space Education & Workforce Institute
 
images of the regolith excavation



General Aviation Technology

Date: August 4-10, 2008
Location: Sonoma County Airport, Santa Rosa, CA
2008 Purse $300K
+ Read More
 
cafe logo
 

Managed by:
Comparative Aircraft Flight Efficiency Foundation
 
images of a plane and a runway



Power Beaming and Tether

Date: October 2008
Location: TBD
2008 Purse $2M
+ Read More about Power Beaming + Read More about Tether
 

spaceward foundation logo
 

Managed by:
Spaceward Foundation
 
images of power beaming & tether competition



Lunar Lander

Date: October 24-25, 2008
Location: Holloman Air Force Base, Alamogordo, NM
Live Webcast: http://www.xprize.org
2008 Purse $2M
+ Read More
 


Xprize Foundation
 


Managed by:
X PRIZE Foundation
 
images of lunar lander challenge



Astronaut Glove

Date: Spring 2009
Location: TBD
2009 Purse $400K
+ Read More
 

volanz Aerospace/Spaceflight America logo
 

Managed by:
Volanz Aerospace, Inc./Spaceflight America
 
images of astronaut glove challenge



Lunar Oxygen Production or MoonROx

Date: Expires June '09
Location: Competitor's location
Purse $1M
+ Read More
 

csewi logo
 

Managed by:
California Space Education & Workforce Institute
 
images of the moonrox competition



Locations of Competitors, Competitions and Organizers

US Map locations of competitiors, 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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NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NASA Official: Janelle Turner
Last Updated: July 14, 2008
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