NASA Needs Prize Contest Ideas

Michael Huang writes "If you like the idea of tech contests--think ANSARI X PRIZE and DARPA Grand Challenge--and you also like space, then NASA wants you. It needs ideas (and rules) for the Centennial Challenges, prize contests with $20 million funding in 2005. Current ideas (download Excel spreadsheet) include: Mars and asteroid microspacecraft missions, lunar robotic landing, robotic triathalon, rover survivor, Antarctic rover traverse and extreme environment computer. Wikipedia has good coverage."

Comments

So, let me get this straight...

[TooMuchEspressoGuy]

...NASA not only wants to waste our taxpayer dollars on useless, overfunded, wasteful government-sponsored ventures, but they *also* want our input on *how* to waste that money. One would think that, after the recent disasters that the agency has experienced as well as the money-pit that the International Space Station continues to be, they would eventually give up.

With that in mind, here's an idea for a new "grand challenge:" See how many private groups/businesses can do NASA's job better than NASA. Because government monopolies such as NASA, like private monopolies, nearly always tend to produce lower quality goods at an inflated cost to the detriment of the taxpayer/consumer, I guarantee you that the number of entries (and successes) will be higher than one might think.