NASA Space to Soil Challenge: Call for Submissions and Self-Nominations for Judges

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Johnson Space Center, through its Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO), is seeking submissions and volunteer judge nominations for the NASA Space to Soil Challenge, a competition designed to advance small satellite computational technologies supporting regenerative agriculture and forestry innovation. The challenge focuses on innovative SmallSat mission concepts that utilize adaptive sensing and onboard processing for land-based applications, requiring participants to develop solutions that operate within strict onboard power, compute, and bandwidth constraints while integrating both hardware and software approaches. Key objectives include identifying cutting-edge technologies that address land resilience and sustainable agriculture through space-based sensing capabilities. Evaluation will assess the technical merit, feasibility, and innovation of submitted proposals, with selections made based on the quality of white papers (5 pages), supporting videos (2-3 minutes), and technical documentation including software code or hardware schematics. The challenge operates on a compressed timeline with a submission deadline of March 28, 2026, approximately 10 finalists to be selected within 3 weeks, and a live pitch event scheduled for June 2026; questions regarding the challenge must be directed to the point of contact with the subject line "NASA Space to Soil Challenge Question/Clarification," while technical inquiries should be sent to info@NASA-Space-to-Soil.org.

This procurement carries no set-aside designation and is being implemented by Blue Clarity LLC as the contracted challenge administrator. The challenge structure includes three phases, with Phase Two offering substantial prize awards: up to three winners will receive $100,000 each and up to two runners-up will receive $25,000 each, for a total potential distribution of approximately $350,000. All winning participants advance to Phase Three, a 10-12 week incubator program, with follow-up assessments conducted 12 months after program completion. NASA is also recruiting volunteer judges with U.S.-based residency requirements and demonstrated expertise in small satellites, onboard processing, entrepreneurship, startup development, venture investment, or venture-building capabilities; judges must commit 10-15 hours in June 2026 and attend a mandatory training call in May 2026. Self-nominations for judge positions should be submitted by email to info@NASA-Space-to-Soil.org with the subject line "NASA Space to Soil Challenge Judge Nomination," and participant registration for the challenge itself is available at https://nasa-space-to-soil.org.