Space competition
Encyclopedia
Space prize redirects here. For the literature prize, see Howard E. Day Prize
A space competition is an offer of a prize to be given to the first competitor who demonstrates a space vehicle, or a space exploration apparatus, which meets a set of pre-established criteria. It spurs pioneering development in private spaceflight
.
offered a US$
10,000,000 prize
for the first non-government organization
to launch a reusable manned spacecraft into space
twice within two weeks. It was modeled after early 20th-century aviation
prizes, and aimed to spur development of low-cost spaceflight. The prize was won on October 4, 2004, the 47th anniversary of the Sputnik 1
launch, by the Tier One
project designed by Burt Rutan and financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, using the experimental spaceplane
SpaceShipOne. $10 million was awarded to the winner, but more than $100 million was invested in new technologies in pursuit of the prize.
on the lunar surface. The prize awards US$20 million to the first team to land a rover on the moon that successfully roves more than 500 meters and transmits back high definition images and video. There is a $5 million second prize, as well as $5 million in potential bonus prizes for extra features such as roving long distances (greater than 5,000 meters), capturing images of man made objects on the moon, detecting ice on one of the Moon's craters, or surviving a lunar night. The X Prize offers the first prize until December 31, 2012, thereafter it offers $15 million until December 31, 2014.
50 million orbital spaceflight
competition established and funded by hotel entrepreneur Robert Bigelow
. The prize would have been awarded to the first US-based privately-funded team to design and build a reusable manned capsule capable of flying 5 astronauts to a Bigelow Aerospace
inflatable space module. The prize expired January 10, 2010. There must be two flights within 60 days. The teams must be based in the United States of America.
2006 the X PRIZE Foundation organized the Wirefly X PRIZE Cup at Las Cruces International Airport in
New Mexico. Cash awards were offered in three areas
as part of the NASA Centennial Challenges
Program:
the Beam Power Challenge, the Tether Challenge, and
the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge.
Although no contestants fulfilled the criteria necessary
to win any of the three challenges, the competition
elicited promising technology developments and
demonstrated their potential to the general public.
Subsequent annual X PRIZE Cups are planned to
encourage further innovation in the personal spaceflight
industry, and are expected to feature cash prizes
for vehicle developers who achieve milestones such
as fastest launch turnaround time, maximum altitude,
and fastest speed record.
, and to track it for a minimum of nine orbits. Most importantly, though, the launch budget must be within £999.99 (about $2000) - and must include all of the required non-reuseable hardware and fuels. According to the full rules of the N-Prize, it is "intended to encourage creativity, originality and inventiveness in the face of severe odds and impossible financial restrictions" and "is aimed at amateurs, enthusiasts, would-be boffins and foolhardy optimists."
Howard E. Day Prize
Created by comic-book writer-artist-publisher Dave Sim and his collaborator, Gerhard, in memory of Sim's late mentor and self-publishing pioneer Gene Day , the Howard E. Day Prize was awarded yearly from 2002 until 2008 for outstanding achievement in self-publishing...
A space competition is an offer of a prize to be given to the first competitor who demonstrates a space vehicle, or a space exploration apparatus, which meets a set of pre-established criteria. It spurs pioneering development in private spaceflight
Private spaceflight
Private spaceflight is flight above Earth altitude conducted by and paid for by an entity other than a government. In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agencies of the Soviet Union and United States pioneered space technology augmented by collaboration with affiliated design...
.
X PRIZE
The Ansari X PRIZE was a space competition in which the X PRIZE FoundationX Prize Foundation
The X PRIZE Foundation is a non-profit organization that designs and manages public competitions intended to encourage technological development that could benefit mankind....
offered a US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
10,000,000 prize
Prize
A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people to recognise and reward actions or achievements. Official prizes often involve monetary rewards as well as the fame that comes with them...
for the first non-government organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
to launch a reusable manned spacecraft into space
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
twice within two weeks. It was modeled after early 20th-century aviation
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
prizes, and aimed to spur development of low-cost spaceflight. The prize was won on October 4, 2004, the 47th anniversary of the Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1 ) was the first artificial satellite to be put into Earth's orbit. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957. The unanticipated announcement of Sputnik 1s success precipitated the Sputnik crisis in the United States and ignited the Space...
launch, by the Tier One
Tier One
Tier One is Scaled Composites' program of suborbital human spaceflight using the reusable spacecraft SpaceShipOne and its launcher White Knight. The craft was designed by Burt Rutan, and the project is funded 20 million US Dollars by Paul Allen...
project designed by Burt Rutan and financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, using the experimental spaceplane
Spaceplane
A spaceplane is a vehicle that operates as an aircraft in Earth's atmosphere, as well as a spacecraft when it is in space. It combines features of an aircraft and a spacecraft, which can be thought of as an aircraft that can endure and maneuver in the vacuum of space or likewise a spacecraft that...
SpaceShipOne. $10 million was awarded to the winner, but more than $100 million was invested in new technologies in pursuit of the prize.
Google Lunar X Prize
Google Lunar X Prize calls for teams to compete in successfully launching, landing, and operating a roverLunar rover
The Lunar Roving Vehicle or lunar rover was a battery-powered four-wheeled rover used on the Moon in the last three missions of the American Apollo program during 1971 and 1972...
on the lunar surface. The prize awards US$20 million to the first team to land a rover on the moon that successfully roves more than 500 meters and transmits back high definition images and video. There is a $5 million second prize, as well as $5 million in potential bonus prizes for extra features such as roving long distances (greater than 5,000 meters), capturing images of man made objects on the moon, detecting ice on one of the Moon's craters, or surviving a lunar night. The X Prize offers the first prize until December 31, 2012, thereafter it offers $15 million until December 31, 2014.
America's Space Prize
America's Space Prize is a US$United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
50 million orbital spaceflight
Orbital spaceflight
An orbital spaceflight is a spaceflight in which a spacecraft is placed on a trajectory where it could remain in space for at least one orbit. To do this around the Earth, it must be on a free trajectory which has an altitude at perigee above...
competition established and funded by hotel entrepreneur Robert Bigelow
Robert Bigelow
Robert T. Bigelow is a hotel and aerospace entrepreneur. He owns the hotel chain Budget Suites of America and is the founder of Bigelow Aerospace....
. The prize would have been awarded to the first US-based privately-funded team to design and build a reusable manned capsule capable of flying 5 astronauts to a Bigelow Aerospace
Bigelow Aerospace
Bigelow Aerospace is a North Las Vegas, Nevada space technology startup company that is pioneering work on expandable space station modules. Bigelow Aerospace was founded by Robert Bigelow in 1998...
inflatable space module. The prize expired January 10, 2010. There must be two flights within 60 days. The teams must be based in the United States of America.
Other, sub-million dollar prizes
In addition, there are several minor space competitions, with prizes being less than one million dollars or its equivalent.Centennial Challenges
Seeking to continue this incentive-based approach, in2006 the X PRIZE Foundation organized the Wirefly X PRIZE Cup at Las Cruces International Airport in
New Mexico. Cash awards were offered in three areas
as part of the NASA Centennial Challenges
Centennial Challenges
The Centennial Challenges are NASA space competition prize contests for non-government-funded technological achievements by American teams.-Current Challenges:...
Program:
the Beam Power Challenge, the Tether Challenge, and
the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge.
Although no contestants fulfilled the criteria necessary
to win any of the three challenges, the competition
elicited promising technology developments and
demonstrated their potential to the general public.
Subsequent annual X PRIZE Cups are planned to
encourage further innovation in the personal spaceflight
industry, and are expected to feature cash prizes
for vehicle developers who achieve milestones such
as fastest launch turnaround time, maximum altitude,
and fastest speed record.
N-Prize
The challenge posed by the N-Prize is to launch a satellite weighing between 9.99 and 19.99 grams into Earth orbitOrbit
In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...
, and to track it for a minimum of nine orbits. Most importantly, though, the launch budget must be within £999.99 (about $2000) - and must include all of the required non-reuseable hardware and fuels. According to the full rules of the N-Prize, it is "intended to encourage creativity, originality and inventiveness in the face of severe odds and impossible financial restrictions" and "is aimed at amateurs, enthusiasts, would-be boffins and foolhardy optimists."