NASA to crown LunaRecycle Challenge winners in Alabama
Up to 14 teams will present lunar waste-management solutions at the University of Alabama, competing for a $1.325 million prize purse.
NASA is set to announce the winners of the final phase of its LunaRecycle Challenge on Friday, 28 August, at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The event, titled the Technology Showcase and Winners Announcement, will bring together up to 14 finalist teams to present their solutions for non-metabolic waste management on future lunar missions. Opening remarks are scheduled for 8:30 a.m. CDT in Room 1026 of H.M. Comer Hall on the university campus.
The LunaRecycle Challenge is a $3 million, two-phase competition launched in 2024 to incentivise the development of new recycling systems. Managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center under the Centennial Challenges program, the initiative aims to improve the sustainability of longer-term lunar missions by reducing waste that is not part of biological metabolism. The University of Alabama’s Lee Styslinger College of Engineering executes the challenge in partnership with NASA.
In the final round of Phase 2, invited teams refined their prototype and digital twin concepts in preparation for live testing at McAbee Construction in Tuscaloosa earlier this month. Following the showcase, up to 11 teams will share a $1.325 million prize purse. The top two prototypes will earn $500,000 and $225,000 respectively, while the top two digital twins will receive $275,000 and $125,000.
Additional awards include up to six Technical Achievement Prizes, which will be granted to teams excelling in categories determined by the judging panel during final deliberations. A $25,000 People’s Choice Award will also be presented to the team that receives the most votes from the public and stakeholders throughout the Technology Showcase. Winners will be announced live during the closing ceremony, which begins at 12 p.m.
The competition has attracted record-breaking interest, with more than 1,200 registrations received, a high-water mark for the 20-year history of the Centennial Challenges program. A panel of 50 judges evaluated nearly 200 submissions in Phase 1, selecting 17 winning teams from five countries and nine US states. The challenge is further supported by subject matter experts at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and NASA’s Ames Research Center in California.
