The US space agency launched the call for its most ambitious global hackathon. For two days, creative minds from all over the planet will use NASA's open data to solve critical problems about the Moon, Mars, and the origin of the universe. You don't need to be a programmer to participate.

NASA has officially opened registration for the Space Apps Challenge, the world's largest innovation event. The appointment will be on Saturday, November 14 and Sunday, November 15, 2026, in a marathon of technological and scientific creation.

The goal is clear: to democratize access to science. Teams must develop solutions based on the agency's exploration objectives, leveraging the ecosystem of open and free data that NASA makes available to humanity.

Who can participate? It is not an exclusive event for programmers. NASA is looking for diverse profiles: students, scientists, engineers, designers, storytellers, and space enthusiasts of all ages.

The three pillars of the 2026 challenge

For this edition, the agency has defined three strategic axes where the participants' efforts will be concentrated:

Focus Area Key Objectives
Return to the Moon Support for the Artemis program, analytical tools, and human systems for lunar bases.
Deep Space Preparation for Mars, integration of data from Martian missions, and surface operational concepts.
Understanding the Universe Access to astrophysics (SPHEREx mission), visualization of cosmic changes, and study of exoplanets.

Nicky Fox, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate in Washington, D.C., emphasized that science must be for everyone and that this is the opportunity for the new generation to address humanity's most critical challenges in space.

To join the experience, interested parties can register on the event's official site, where they can:

  • Join one of more than 500 local events distributed globally.
  • Build multidisciplinary teams.
  • Select the specific problem they wish to solve during the hackathon.

Source: NASA