Latest news with #LunaRecycleChallenge
UPI
4 days ago
- Science
- UPI
NASA launches second phase of moon recycling competition
Aug. 11 (UPI) -- NASA is launching the second phase of its moon recycling competition to clean up trash in space. The space agency's LunaRecycle Challenge is looking for the brightest minds to figure out a way to recycle plastics, foams and metals left behind by ongoing activity and building in space. "NASA is eager to see how reimagining these materials can be helpful to potential future planetary surface missions," said Jennifer Edmunson, acting program manager for Centennial Challenges at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. "I'm confident focusing on the most critical trash items -- and integration of the prototype and digital twin competition tracks -- will yield remarkable solutions," Edmunson added, "that could enable a sustainable human presence off-Earth and transform the future of space exploration." As the United States discusses replacing the International Space Station and placing a small nuclear reactor on the moon, the potential for increased waste in space is growing. LunaRecycle's Phase 1 competition attracted record-breaking interest with more than 1,200 registrations. Seventeen teams, from five countries and nine U.S. states, were named winners in that challenge. For Phase 2, only U.S. individuals and teams may participate and must build a physical prototype to manage a year's worth of trash. The challenge estimates a crew of four astronauts would produce more than 4,600 pounds of single-use waste to include food packaging and discarded clothing. The goal for competitors is to recycle the waste, while minimizing crew time and any hazards. Submissions for NASA's LunaRecycle milestone round, which is being administered by the University of Alabama, are open now and due January 2026. Finalists from that round will be announced in February with up to 20 finalists competing in the challenge's in-person prototype demonstrations next August. Successful solutions in both rounds could net winners cash prizes totaling $2 million.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA Needs Help Solving One Of Space's Grossest Problems: Poop
Space travel isn't all stars and science. There's also poop—lots of it. Now, NASA is asking for help turning human waste, including astronaut feces, into something useful, so future crews won't add to the dozens of bags of waste already sitting on the lunar surface, left behind by previous Moon missions. The LunaRecycle Challenge, a $3 million, two-track, two-phase competition, is NASA's latest push to make space exploration more eco-friendly. As the agency plans for longer-term lunar missions, they're facing a very down-to-Earth problem: how to recycle solid waste, from wrappers to bodily matter, in a way that supports life on the Moon without sending trash back to Earth. It's true, there are currently bags of human waste, including poop, on the Moon. Specifically, the Apollo missions left behind 96 bags of waste to lighten the spacecraft for returning to Earth. 'NASA is committed to sustainable space exploration,' the agency said in a release, and that looks like figuring out how to minimize, process, and reuse all kinds of waste—including the gross stuff. The challenge asks teams to submit designs that convert trash into something useful, like building materials or science tools, while using as little electricity, water, and space as possible. The LunaRecycle Challenge is split into two tracks. The Prototype Build track focuses on hardware designs for actual lunar recycling systems, while the Digital Twin track seeks high-tech, virtual models of recycling solutions. Both tracks aim to turn solid waste into feedstock for new materials that astronauts can use for science, repairs, or even living quarters. While this challenge is aimed at solving a very specific lunar problem, NASA says the solutions could ripple back down to Earth. From cleaner recycling technologies to small-scale systems for remote communities, the agency hopes the project will inspire new approaches to trash management on our planet too. Phase 1 is already underway, and although Phase 2's timeline hasn't yet been announced, it will involve successful submissions being judged by a panel of experts from government, industry, and academia. Participants won't get funding upfront—but if their ideas work, the prize purse is significant. lead editor Jenn Jordan explores how weather and climate weave through our daily lives, shape our routines and leave lasting impacts on our communities. MORE ON Signs Of Life On Another Planet? Katy Perry, Gayle King Launch On Blue Origin Rocket Astronaut Shares Aurora Footage From Space
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA offers $3M in competition to recycle human poop in space
April 9 (UPI) -- NASA is offering $3 million to anyone who proposes technology to solve an unusual problem: recycling feces and other human waste in space. The space agency's LunaRecycle Challenge calls on members of the public to propose a technological means of recycling astronauts' feces, urine and vomit on the moon and during long-haul space flights. There are currently 96 bags of human waste that were left behind on the moon by astronauts from the Apollo missions, and the aim of the LunaRecycle Challenge is to prevent adding to the stinky space stash. The chosen technology will be put to use on future space missions, including hypothetical long-term outposts on the moon. "NASA is committed to sustainable space exploration. As we prepare for future human space missions, there will be a need to consider how various waste streams, including solid waste, can be minimized -- as well as how waste can be stored, processed, and recycled in a space environment so that little or no waste will need to be returned to earth," NASA said on its website. NASA is currently reviewing the first round of proposals to decide which ones will move on to the next phase of the competition. The team who comes out on top at the end of the competition will be awarded $3 million.
