Human Lander Challenge

NASA’s Human Lander Challenge (HuLC) is a collegiate competition administered by the National Institute of Aerospace on behalf of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Sponsored through NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate (ESDMD) and the Human Landing System (HLS) Program Office, the HuLC initiative seeks to engage U.S.-based college students in the development of innovative, systems-level solutions to support sustained lunar presence and future missions to Mars. The 2026 competition invites students to address challenges in Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS), which are critical to ensuring safe, habitable conditions in deep space exploration. The 2026 theme centers on long-duration spaceflight and requires participating teams to propose improvements in areas such as noise reduction in space habitats, health monitoring systems that use fewer sensors, advanced potable water dispensers for microgravity environments, and fluid transfer systems between surface assets on the Moon and Mars. NASA encourages teams to think creatively while ensuring their concepts are technically feasible, low risk to crew, survivable in extreme environments, and aligned with NASA’s long-term exploration strategies. Teams must be affiliated with accredited U.S.-based community colleges, colleges, or universities and must include at least one faculty advisor and two student members who participate directly in the forum presentation. While advisors can support the team, the bulk of work must be completed and presented by students. Interdisciplinary and multi-university collaborations are encouraged. Teams are required to submit a proposal package that includes a 5–7 page written proposal, a two-minute concept video, and a graphic of the design. All components must be submitted by March 4, 2026. Up to 12 finalist teams will be selected based on the proposal's innovation, technical rigor, and alignment with NASA’s exploration goals. Each finalist team will receive $9,000 to support Phase 2 work, including a technical paper, poster, and a presentation at the HuLC Forum, to be held June 23–25, 2026, in Huntsville, Alabama. Additional deliverables include the submission of a technical paper by May 27, 2026, and poster and presentation materials by June 18, 2026. The top three teams will receive additional prizes totaling $18,000: $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second, and $3,000 for third. The judging panel, composed of NASA and industry subject matter experts, evaluates each submission on technical innovation (up to 40 points), technical credibility (up to 40 points), project management (15 points), and video quality (5 points). Proposals must be original, free of AI-generated content, and supported by sound engineering principles, assumptions, and design constraints relevant to space applications. Late submissions or incomplete entries will not be reviewed. The application window for HuLC 2026 is currently open, with Notices of Intent and full proposals accepted through March 4, 2026. While submitting a Notice of Intent is optional, teams are encouraged to do so early to receive competition updates. Contact information, proposal templates, and guidelines are available on the official HuLC website. For questions, teams can reach out to the organizing team via email at HuLC@nianet.org.

Do not use AI-generated content; proposals must be technically rigorous and original.