Creative Solutions Competition for Space Problems and a Prize of $3,000 from PHOENIX SPACE

PHOENIX SPACE invites high school and bachelor's students to participate in the challenge of providing creative solutions to a space science problem.

This competition affords students an opportunity to apply their classroom learning and research to solving scientific challenges, leverage creativity, and develop presentation and teamwork skills while connecting to and competing against a global community of like-minded students who have an interest in space science. Working in teams of up to three, students will identify and define a problem statement from one of three topic areas related to the human habitation of Mars and develop a logic-driven, researched solution to the chosen problem.

Competition Categories:

ENGINEERING:

Solutions in this area will address fundamental physical problems involved with living on Mars. They should propose a technological design solution to a problem with great importance.

Some examples of potential problems include:

• How will a Martian base be powered safely, continuously, and reliably?
• How will transport across the surface be achieved?
• How can mass be minimized for every item transported from Earth?
• What layout of the base is best to minimize waste of resources (energy, water, air) in transport?
• What structure(s) should be used in the construction of a living, agricultural, and industrial areas?
• How can Mars’ atmosphere be transformed via terraforming into a more hospitable environment?

SUSTAINABILITY:

Solutions in this area must address problems involved in maintaining a (relatively) safe, healthy, and prosperous settlement on Mars that is as self-sufficient as possible.

Some examples of potential problems include:

• How can humans be protected from the excess radiation present on Mars from the solar activity?
• Which plant(s) are best suited to grow in the conditions on Mars, and how can they be used?
• How can water be recycled or extracted from Mars?
• How will excess heat be used productively on the base?
• Which other organisms (beyond plants) should be brought to the Mars base to develop sustainable ecosystems?
• How should a settlement grow as the population increases?
• What does an optimal Martian diet contain?

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION:

Solutions in this area must address problems involved in keeping individuals satisfied, healthy, harmonious, fulfilled, and socially integrated as part of a long-term Martian society. They should address problems that are essential to the social and individual thriving of Martians.

Some examples of potential problems include:

• How will young people on Mars be educated?
• How will decisions be made on societal matters?
• What sports will Martians play in low gravity?
• How can we investigate and mitigate the effects of an almost 25-hour day on Mars?

A Grand Prize of US$3,000 is awarded to the winning team, and each of the other four finalist teams will receive a US$1,000 prize.

• The Phoenix Space LaunchPad Challenge is open to those who will be 15 to 19 years old.
• Only one entry per person is permitted.
• A person may not be on more than one team.
• There is no cost to participate in this competition.
• Participants under the age of 18 on 9 October 2021 must obtain written parental or guardian consent to compete in the LaunchPad Challenge. The consent form must be signed and returned to Phoenix Space before the team’s work will be judged. The deadline to submit the form is 10 August 2021. The Parental Consent form may be downloaded here. An Arabic language version of the form is here.

Judging Criteria:

Entries will be judged and scored by a panel of international academics and scientists based on the following categories:

• Problem identification.
• The originality of the solution.
• The comprehensiveness of research.
• Feasibility of the solution.
• Critical evaluation of the solution.
• Effectiveness of communication.

Timeline:

• Late April 2021: The LaunchPad Challenge opened for team registration. Registration continues through July 31st.
• Late May until August 10: Initial submissions are accepted. The initial submission is a 4–5-page written solution and a short video.
• September 1: 20 semi-finalists will be announced.
• September 1-15: Semi-finalist teams refine their solution and create a more in-depth presentation for judges to review.
• September 15: Deadline for semi-finalists to submit their final solution presentation.
• September 15-24: Judges review the semi-finalist's 2nd submissions and select the finalists.
• September 24: 5 finalists are announced.
• October 4-5: Finalists will give a 15 minute live virtual presentation to the judging panel, followed by a brief Q&A session, as a part of World Space Week.
• October 8-9: Winners are announced and prizes awarded.

ABOUT PHOENIX SPACE:

PHOENIX SPACE provides displaced and underprivileged students in the Middle East with cutting-edge STEM education programs and tools to develop their scientific literacy, improve their life chances, and empower their communities.

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