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NASA has opened a multiphase, $1 million Moon Base Student Challenge for teams at U.S. high schools and post-secondary schools. Students will propose solutions in six areas of lunar base design, and registration through NASA’s STEM Gateway is open until Jan. 25, 2027.
NASA has opened its $1 million Moon Base Student Challenge, inviting teams from U.S. high schools and post-secondary schools to develop design concepts for a future lunar base. The multiphase competition covers six areas of Moon Base operations, and students must register through NASA’s STEM Gateway by Jan. 25, 2027.
NASA announced the competition Sunday during a MAX POWER event at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. The agency says the challenge is intended to bring student ideas into the design work for a base where astronauts could live, work and explore near the lunar South Pole.
Teams will develop solutions in six categories: power generation and storage, construction, life-support systems, surface mobility, communications networks and astronaut safety. NASA describes the competition as multiphase and says its assignments address environmental and mission-design requirements for living and operating on the lunar surface.
Deliverables are intended to resemble work used in industry, including trade studies, concept proposals and stakeholder briefings. NASA says students from technical, vocational and other academic tracks can participate without prior specialized engineering or technical experience. The agency has announced a total prize pool of $1 million, but the release does not specify how the money will be divided among teams or stages.
Student Ideas for Lunar Operations
The competition gives students a way to work on design problems connected to NASA’s stated plans for a lunar presence, while practicing skills that could be relevant to space-sector careers. Its subject areas reach beyond spacecraft design: a functioning base would need reliable power, life support, communications and safe mobility, alongside structures suited to the lunar environment.
NASA says a permanent human presence on the Moon could help prepare for future crewed missions to Mars. That is the agency’s rationale for the broader Moon Base effort, not a guarantee that student proposals will be adopted or that a permanent settlement will be built on a particular schedule. The challenge’s near-term confirmed purpose is to solicit concepts and provide career-relevant experience to participants.
Opening the competition to varied academic and vocational tracks may also widen participation beyond students already pursuing aerospace engineering. NASA says the tasks are designed around authentic mission parameters and do not require specialized technical experience, though teams will still need to meet the competition’s eligibility and submission rules.
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How the Competition Fits NASA’s Plans
NASA describes Moon Base as a planned place for astronauts to live, work and explore in the lunar South Pole region. The agency links a sustained human presence on the Moon to its longer-term goal of preparing for crewed Mars missions. The announcement does not provide a construction schedule, a completed base design or a timeline for establishing that presence.
The challenge was designed by NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement in collaboration with its Moon Base Program. The Institute of Competition Sciences administers it under a contract with the NASA Center of Excellence for Collaborative Innovation, part of NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate. Students can find competition details, eligibility rules and official terms at moonbasechallenge.org, while registration is handled through the NASA STEM Gateway.
Prize Details and Mission Timeline
NASA’s announcement confirms a $1 million total award but does not explain the number of awards, the amount available at each phase, or how judges will score entries. Those details, along with complete eligibility requirements and submission instructions, are left to the official competition rules.
The agency has not said whether any student concept will be selected for further engineering or incorporated into Moon Base planning. The announcement also gives no firm schedule for building the base or establishing a long-term human presence at the lunar South Pole. Those future plans should be distinguished from the competition, which is currently an invitation to develop and present ideas.
Registration and Competition Milestones
Interested teams must register through the NASA STEM Gateway by Jan. 25, 2027. NASA directs participants to the competition website for the full rules, eligibility conditions and details on required work. The announcement does not list dates for later competition phases, judging or prize distribution.
As the challenge proceeds, NASA and its administrator are expected to provide participants with the applicable phase requirements and submission guidance. Until those milestones are published, teams should rely on the official rules rather than assume a particular award schedule or technical selection process.
Key Questions
Who can enter the Moon Base Student Challenge?
The competition is open to student teams at U.S. high schools and post-secondary schools. NASA says prior specialized engineering or technical experience is not required; full eligibility conditions are available in the official rules.
How much prize money is available?
NASA announced a total of $1 million for the challenge. Its announcement does not specify how many teams will receive awards or how the money will be divided.
What topics will teams work on?
Teams will propose concepts in six areas: power generation and storage, construction, life support, surface mobility, communications networks and astronaut safety.
When is the registration deadline?
Registration is open through the NASA STEM Gateway until Jan. 25, 2027. NASA says the competition website has the detailed rules and eligibility information.
Will NASA use the winning designs to build the Moon Base?
NASA has not said that any student submission will be selected for construction or adopted in the base design. The announcement describes the challenge as a way to develop concepts and give students experience with lunar mission design.
Source: nasa.gov
