MSNBC reported on the latest set of new NASA prizes:

NASA today announced three new competitions offering a total of $5
million in prizes — and only one of them involves actually putting
something in outer space.

I'm a huge fan of prizes.  Although I love NASA's work, I dream of a day where fully half of NASA's workload consists of evaluating prize entries by indy companies that are hitting specific get-us-to-space benchmarks.

Picosatellite launch teams, including Interorbital Systems , are listed as likely contenders for the new orbital prize, but of course some of the most innovative design work is on tech development that , while stuck on the ground, leads to space exploration.  The current list of prizes offered by NASA, including the Centennial Challenges and the new 3, include:

Current and Upcoming:
1) Nano-Satellite Launch Challenge, $2 million.  Put a satellite into Earth orbit twice in one week.
2) Night Rover Challenge, $1.5 million.  Operate a rover using solar power... at night.
3) Sample Return Robot Challenge, $1.5 million.  Retrieve geological samples from a variety of locations without human intervention.
4) Strong-Tether Challenge, $2 million.  Build a strong tether prototype material suitable for a space elevator.
5) High-Powered Beaming Systems Challenge, $1.1 million.  Power beaming to a lunar rover.
6) Green Flight Challenge, $1.65 million.  Fly exceeding 200 passenger-miles per gallon.
7) x-Hab Contest (students), $0.15 million.  Design an inflatable space habitat.

Past Challenges:
8) Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge (Level 1&Level 2), $1.65 million: remote-pilot a lander, twice.
9) Regolith Excavation Challenge, $0.75 million.  Remotely dig and deliver simulated moon-dirt.
10) Space Elevator Games, $0.9 million. Build and operate a small cable-climbing robot that gets its power beamed from a laser.
11) Astronaut Glove Challenge (redux), $0.3 million.  Design a better astronaut glove.

And of course Prize 12, where I'll give a full set of the commemorative US quarters (one for each state!) to anyone who can get me safely into orbit.  Return flight optional.

What a "Shooting Star" looks like from Space. Taken on August 13, 2011 by Astronaut Ron Garan on the International Space Station during Perseids Meteor Shower.  (thanks, @LittleSDO)

Alex
Launching Project Calliope, sponsored by Science 2.0, in 2011-2012
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