NASA Space Apps Challenge 2026 - Local Ottawa Event

10 Year Anniversary! A weekend hackathon for developers, designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, astronomers and space enthusiasts. NEW: CELEBRATE OUR 10TH ANNIVERARY This year marks our decade hosting in Ottawa - join in the fun! Space Hardware Challenge with Carleton Space Clubs Last year, for first time anywhere, the Ottawa organizers partnered with the Carleton University Planetary Robotics, CUonOrbit, and Astronomy clubs to offer a "Space Hardware Challenge"! This was in honour of the Artemis Missions which returned to the moon and contained significant Canadian participation including from our astronaut Colonel Jeremy Hansen. We're going for a hardware challenge repeat! The Space Hardware Challenge is being led and designed by Carleton University students. It will involve a hardware- and physics-related technical challenge that requires some engineering, math, and physics work. Support and mentoring will be provided onsite during the hackathon weekend. The challenge name and description will be announced shortly after the official NASA International Space Apps Challenges are revealed (late September). You do not have to be a current or former student of Carleton to participate in this or any other hackathon weekend challenge. However in order to participate in the Space Hardware challenge you and your team members must be physically present and participating during the event weekend (there is no virtual participation for this particular challenge). NASA Space Apps Challenge 2026 will be another intense 48-hour weekend hackathon for developers, designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, astronomers and enthusiasts. Form and build products and prototypes against NASA- and CSA-designed challenges that leverage spacecraft, celestial & science data. This year marks 10 years of NASA Space Apps Challenge hackathon-ing in Ottawa, and we return to Carleton University! This year you can attend physically at the Technology Innovation Management Program facilities located at 5063 Nicol Building on campus. We'll also allow virtual participation as you prefer. For more information about our Ottawa event visit our website, or learn more on the global event website.