NASA Space Apps Challenge 2026
NASA runs its yearly global hackathon on November 14 and 15, 2026. Registration is open and teams of up to six people work on 14 space challenges.
The 2026 NASA Space Apps Challenge runs worldwide on November 14 and 15, 2026. The theme is The Next Frontier. NASA has published 14 challenges and the challenge summaries are already live, so teams can pick a topic before the weekend starts.
Anyone can take part. The first step is a NASA Space Apps account, then registration for the hackathon itself, which the site says stays open until the hackathon closes on November 15. Participants then choose an in person Local Event or the virtual Universal Event. A team may have at most six people.
Project submission opens on Saturday, November 14 at 9:00 AM and closes on Sunday, November 15 at 11:59 PM local time. Teams that submit get a participant certificate and become eligible for Global Judging. NASA encourages every team to submit whatever it finished during the weekend.
Team forming opened on September 17, 2026, and accounts and event choices can still be changed up to the close of the hackathon. A participant survey follows on November 30, 2026.
NASA Space Apps is paid for by the NASA Science Mission Directorate through a contract with Booz Allen Hamilton, Mindgrub and SecondMuse. The 2026 pages do not state a cash prize; Global Winners are picked after judging.