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Guide to the NASA Student Space Settlement Design Contest Collection
ARC20.02
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Title: NASA Student Space Settlement Design Contest Collection
Date (inclusive): 2000-2018
Date (bulk): 2006, 2013, 2015
Collection Number: ARC20.02
Extent:
2 cubic feet
(with 82 digital copies, 1.01 Gigabytes)
(with 82 digital copies, 1.01 Gigabytes)
Repository:
Ames Research Center,
NASA Ames Research Center Archives
Moffett Field, California 94035
Abstract: This collection contains a selection of student entries for NASA's annual space settlement design contest in the form of thirty
four original artworks and ten technical reports created by students from around the world in grades twelve and under. Also
included is a 2008 technical paper about the contest and the lessons learned from it, and a photograph of contest ephemera
(a clock). The bulk of the collection has been digitized.
Language:
English
Collection is open for research.
Copyright does not apply to United States government records. For non-government
material, researcher must contact the original creator.
NASA Ames Research Center Archives, NASA Ames Research Center. Moffett Field, California. ARC20.02, NASA Student Space Settlement
Design Contest Collection, [Container number] : [Folder number]. [Identification of item]. [Date, if available].
NASA ARC. ARC20.02, [Container number] : [Folder number]. [Identification of item]. [Date, if available].
Transferred by Ruth K. Globus on February 6, 2020 (Acc. 2020-002).
Official NASA digital photographs of the front sides of the works, as captured by Ames Research Center photographer Dominic
Hart were added to this collection in August 2023 (Accession 2023-016, ARC-TR-2023-016).
NASA Ames Research Center sponsored an annual international student space settlement design contest from 1994 to 2018, in
conjunction with the National Space Society. The contest was co-founded and led by Ames scientist Al Globus. Each year, students
were tasked with designing a permanent orbital space colony, with no restrictions on how their design should be executed or
presented. Entries ranged from detailed engineering reports to artistic conceptualizations developed by both individuals and
teams. The contest was intended for students in the sixth to twelfth grades, with students in different grade levels being
judged separately. Over the years, participants in lower grades also submitted entries, which were accepted, and some won
awards. Several categories of awards were given out, including one for art and a grand prize for the overall best entry. Submissions
had to be mailed by post in paper form to arrive at Ames by March 31 of each year to be judged by a panel of the center's
scientists and engineers. To keep costs down while also engaging students from around the world, administration of the contest
was largely conducted through an informational website developed by Al Globus. In 2019, sponsorship of the contest, along
with the website, was transferred to the National Space Society. (An archived copy of the 2018 version of the website is in
the NASA Ames Research Center Archives. See Related Collections.)
The following terms may be used to index this collection.
Ames Research Center
Globus, Al
Globus, Ruth K. (Ruth Kathleen), 1954-
School contests
Space (Art)
Space Colonies--Design and Construction
This collection comprises a conference paper about the contest presented at the 2008 International Conference on Environmental
Systems, and a small assortment of contest entries from students around the world, which were accumulated by Ames senior scientist
Ruth Globus. She participated as a judge and, for a time, was a NASA civil servant sponsor for the contest. Globus displayed
some of the artwork in her office over the years. Also included is a photograph of space settlement design contest ephemera
in the form of a clock that sat on a bookshelf in Globus's office at Ames.
Contest entries in this collection include ten technical reports, most of which are grand prize winners, and thirty four original
artworks submitted by students in grades twelve and below from schools in Bulgaria, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Romania, South
Korea, and the United States. Many of the artworks received prizes for artistic merit. Some submissions have entry forms with
more information, including short descriptions from the students.
The bulk of the collection has been digitized. A separate container list in tabular form is provided for this material.
Note
A container list for this collection is available in a separate document.
LINK TO CONTAINER LIST IN TABULAR FORM:
arc2002_FileKey.pdf .
Arrangement of the NASA Student Space Settlement Design Contest Collection
Contest entries are arranged chronologically by type (artwork or report), then by artist and team. Digital reproductions of
artwork files are arranged in two sets. One set in PDF format provides reproductions of both sides of the works as well as
any supporting documentation. A second set in JPG format provides official NASA photographs of the front sides of the works,
as captured by Ames photographer Dominic Hart (NASA photograph catalog series ACD23-0090).