NASA Ames Research Center and National Space Society (NSS) invite students worldwide up to 12th grade (18 years old) to participate in the 2019 edition of the annual Space Settlement Contest.

This annual contest is for all students at up to 12th grade from anywhere in the world. Individuals, small teams of two to five, and large teams of six to twelve are judged separately.Entries are also grouped by age/grade of the oldest contestant for judging. The age groups are 6th and younger, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th. The grand prizeis awarded to the best entry regardless of contestant age.Students develop space settlement designs and related materials.These are sent to NASA Ames for judgement. Submissions must be received by February 15. Check out the results of the1994,1995,1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017, and2018contests.

Contest deadline, prizes and certificates:

• All submissions must be received by February 15.
• A pdf certificate will be sent to all winners.
• Participant certificates will be distributedin pdf from this web page on the honor system.
• The best submission, regardless of category, wins the grand prize, consisting of the space settlement submission being placed on the contest World Wide Web site.
• The National Space Society (NSS) invites all 2019 contest participants to attend the NSS 38th annual International Space Development Conference (ISDC) in Arlington, VA June 6-9.Every year, hundreds of contestants attend, along with their parents, teachers, siblings and friends. Special activities for contestants are planned, including:
  • The highest ranking winners attending will be invited to give oral presentations as time is available.
  • To the extent space is available, all contestants who attend will be invited to display a poster of their work.
  • Special sessions are arranged for contestants, teachers, parents, etc.
  • The highest ranking attending entry will receive the Herman Rubin Award of $5,000 and give a plenary talk at one of the conference's signature events.
• These activities are not yet finalized and may change. Nonetheless, this is a tremendous opportunity to present your work, meet some of the most important people in space development as well as your fellow contestants, and have a great time.

  If you are planning to attend ISDC 2019, please see the ISDC Space Settlement Students Web Site. Note: only the 2018 page is available right now. We will update when the 2019 page becomes available.Only if necessary, contact isdc.students@nss.org. Note: Contestants are responsible for all travel arrangements and costs, visas and conference expenses. Also, minors (children under 18) must be accompanied bya responsible adult (21 years or older). Among other potential problems, the hotel may not allow check in without an adult in the party.

  Students from outside of U.S. planning on attending the ISDC should apply as soon as possible for a passport and (if necessary) a visa. It may take some time (months) to acquire them. If you need a letter of invitation, please use the form athttps://www.nss.org/events/contest_invitation_form.shtmlONLY if that does not work, requests for letters of invitation can be sent to isdc.students@nss.org along with the school name, address, and names of students, teachers, or family members needing the letter.

• Contest categories are
  • 6th grade and younger: individual, small group, large group,
  • 7th grade: individual, small group, large group,
  • 8th grade: individual, small group, large group,
  • 9th grade: individual, small group, large group,
  • 10th grade: individual, small group, large group,
  • 11th grade: individual, small group, large group,
  • 12th grade: individual, small group, large group.
• Additional categories based on artistic and literary merit are also included in the contest.
• For additional information see the rest of this page and the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

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