Food Fight

NASA Announces Top Contenders for the ‘Deep Space Food Challenge’

In a bid to ensure the sustenance of astronauts on future deep space missions, NASA has revealed eight triumphant teams and dispensed $750,000 in prizes for the second phase of the Deep Space Food Challenge. The victors will now progress to the third and final stage of the challenge.

As NASA sets its sights on exploring farther reaches of the solar system, the demand for robust food systems capable of nourishing crews on extended space expeditions becomes increasingly pressing. The Deep Space Food Challenge invites problem solvers from around the globe to devise innovative technologies that will aid in feeding astronauts during prolonged space travel. Amy Kaminski, program executive for Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing in NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, expressed enthusiasm for the winning solutions, generated by a diverse array of teams comprising businesses, universities, and individual solvers. Kaminski noted that these achievements underscore the value of NASA leveraging the expertise of various stakeholders to surmount pivotal challenges. She also revealed the agency’s excitement in announcing the advent of Phase 3, eagerly anticipating the trajectory of these teams’ technologies.

During Phase 2 of the competition teams were tasked with constructing and demonstrating small-scale prototypes of technologies that minimize resource usage & waste generation while creating safe, nutritious, and delicious food for astronauts. An esteemed panel of judges selected eight winners who will work to develop full-scale food technologies throughout the coming year.

5 distinguished U.S. based teams, each earning $150,000 in prizes, are poised to compete for a total pool of up to $1.5 million in Phase 3.

  1. Air Company from Brooklyn, New York, has devised a system that harnesses air, water, electricity, and yeast to produce food.
  2. Interstellar Lab, hailing from Merritt Island, Florida, has engineered a modular bioregenerative system for cultivating fresh microgreens, vegetables, mushrooms, and insects.
  3. Kernel Deltech USA, situated in Cape Canaveral, Florida, has created a system for cultivating mushroom-based ingredients.
  4. Nolux, headquartered in Riverside, California, has crafted a solution that emulates the natural photosynthesis process to generate plant- and mushroom-based ingredients.
  5. SATED (Safe Appliance, Tidy, Efficient, and Delicious), headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, has developed a space cooking appliance enabling astronauts to prepare diverse meals utilizing ingredients with extended shelf lives.

3 international teams have been selected as winners through a joint collaboration between NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

  1. Enigma of the Cosmos, representing Melbourne, Australia, has devised an adaptive growing system to enhance the efficiency of plants’ natural growth cycles.
  2. Mycorena, based in Gothenburg, Sweden, has formulated a system that combines microalgae and fungi to produce a microprotein.
  3. Solar Foods, originating from Lappeenranta, Finland, has engineered a gas fermentation system capable of generating single-cell proteins.

Denise Morris, program manager of NASA Centennial Challenges at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, emphasized the pivotal role of flavorful and nutritious food in successful human space exploration missions. Morris expressed optimism that the groundbreaking possibilities presented by this challenge could sustain future explorers during missions and potentially address food scarcity or production challenges on Earth.

The Deep Space Food Challenge forms part of NASA’s Centennial Challenges Program within the Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing initiative of the Space Technology Mission Directorate. Centennial Challenges are overseen by NASA Marshall, while subject matter experts at NASA’s Johnson Space Center and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center provide support for the competition. The U.S. and international competitors are managed jointly by NASA and the Methuselah Foundation.

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