Video 8:31 minutes – April 24, 2013: Space Station Live commentator Pat Ryan spoke with Nick Skytland, NASA Open Innovation Project Manager, about the International Space Apps Challenge

VIDEOS: Which projects won the 2014 SpaceAppsChallenge?

The 2014 NASA SpaceAppsChallenge involved more than 8,000 participants at 95 locations around the world. There were 40 challenges in five categories: Earth Watch, Technology in Space, Human Spaceflight, Robotics and Asteroids, with 700 projects submitted. Source:

SKYWATCH – APP (Video – 59 seconds)

— Alert-Alert challenge: SkyWatch, selected as the Best Use of Data, was created at Space Apps Toronto. The SkyWatch app is a visual representation of data collected from observatories around the world in near real time. The app provides telescope coordinates of celestial events, and plots the location through Google Sky. Users can subscribe or filter sky alerts, and share them through social media.

ANDROID BASE STATION – HARDWARE SOLUTION (Video – 2:45 minutes)

— PhoneSat challenge: Android Base Station, selected as the Best Use of Hardware, was created at Space Apps London to transform a smart phone into wifi hotspot by connecting to satellites using a 3-D printed receiver. This automated, ultra-portable, satellite tracking station can log changes in micro-satellites in orbit.

AURORA WEARABLES – TECHNICAL/ARTISTIC SOLUTION (Video 1:15 minutes)

— Space Wearables challenge: Aurora Wearables, selected as the Best Mission Concept, was created at Space Apps Exeter as a collaboration between artists, fashion designers, technologists, and software developers. This internet-connected spacesuit is designed for astronauts to wear on the International Space Station and beyond.

YORBIT – APP (Video 1:17 minutes)

— Earth as Art challenge: Yorbit, selected as Most Inspiring, was created at Space Apps Kansas City as a way to search, personalize, and share the stunning photographs captured by NASA satellites orbiting high above Earth. Searching by date and image, users can choose images from unique maps and write message on the image to share using social media or email.

SKYSNAPPER – APP (Video 30 seconds)

— My Sky Color challenge: SkySnapper, selected for greatest Galactic Impact, was created at Space Apps London to measure air quality by snapping photos of the sky. Crowd-sourced sky images are mapped to assess air pollution by sky color to spot polluted areas and monitor progress over time.

SPACE HELMET – PROJECT (No video available)

Social media users around the world joined the contest as judges, voting for their favorite projects. People’s Choice Award winner Space Helmet, created by Space Apps Valencia, received the highest score based on a formula that took into account the number of tweets, unique users and timeline deliveries.

Source: Winners of 2014 NASA SpaceAppsChallenge.

To register:
If you have read this far, you already have a good idea of what you might need to think about and research in order to contribute to the hackathon effort. So take the leap, and see what comes of it. Don’t be intimidated by the unfamiliar, and see what comes of chasing down your idea in this context.

Here’s the link to the Home Page of the 2015 NASA SpaceAppsChallenge set for April 10-12, 2015. Register now, read up on your choice of project, figure out the logistics, and show up. You will be in the event, an enjoyment in itself, regardless of the outcome. Just focus on the content, try to join a team or organize one, and watch things unfold. Good luck!