The NASA Space Apps Challenge is an international annual hackathon that provides a way for almost anyone to be a “rocket scientist” for a weekend. If you want an innovative, fun, and welcoming pathway towards an education or career in the aerospace field, this is a great opportunity for you.
I was thrilled to be a part of another local Space Apps Challenge in my city for 2024. Here is a copy of our press release that we issued after the event. I will add more photos from the event. We had a great team of organizers, sponsors, partners, and helpers this year. We also had the largest number of participants in the 5th year of hosting an event in our region. Special thanks and credit to Ingrid Rosten who has been the lead organizer for all of those events for the Sacramento region, including this year’s. Enjoy learning more about the Space Apps Challenge and our 2024 event from this article.
NASA Space Apps Challenge in Folsom Was a Resounding Success
Folsom, CA – [October 14, 2024] – The 2024 edition of the NASA International Space Apps Challenge “hackathon” was a resounding success for the Sacramento region. Over the course of one weekend in October, teams form in cities around the world and online to use NASA’s open data to solve real-world problems. Volunteers and sponsors come together in communities to host local venues for teams to form, work together, receive help from mentors, and present their solutions to a panel of judges. It is a collaborative event that fosters innovation and creativity.
The event space of Granite City Coworking, located in historic Folsom, was the venue for almost 100 people who registered from across the Sacramento region, 65 of whom participated on site. Many teams formed without people knowing each other in advance. Participants ranged from tweens to seniors, with a majority being high school or college students.
The 20 challenges defined by NASA ranged in difficulty and breadth around this year’s theme of “The Sun Touches Everything.” Challenges included “Chronicles of Exoplanet Exploration” to “Create an Orrery Web App That Displays Near-Earth Objects.”
After working all weekend through lunch on Sunday, ten teams gave presentations to a panel of local esteemed judges. Judges selected first and second places. The audience selected a People’s Choice Award. These three winning teams advance to another round of judging from NASA. The local winners were:
First place was Slime Squad. Second place was Eruption Solaire. People’s Choice went to Eco Nauts.
The five judges represented a diverse range of expertise and support from across the community. Yang Ni, the President/CEO of CALNY Ventures and CALNY Technologies LLC is a serial entrepreneur and early stage investor. Sedale Turbovsky is CEO of Open Grants IO which aims to transform the grant funding landscape by making it more accessible, equitable, and transparent. Anastasia Long is a Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Control Supervisor at Northern California TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control). She is also a board member at the Aerospace Museum of California at McClellan Airfield. Roderick Cross is a Marine Engineering graduate from Durham University who has built a dynamic career in the tech sector, primarily working in the startup world. Sandhya Balasubramanian is a Manager of the Software Engineering Vendor Solutions and Quality team at California Independent System Operator (CAISO) which manages the electricity system for western United States. She is also a board member at the Aerospace Museum of California.
Winning teams received prizes from two of the sponsors, the Aerospace Museum of California, based at the former McClellan Air Force Base, and Aero Maestro book publishing. Participants were also treated to viewing of the sun through different types of solar telescopes thanks to the Community Observatory organization.
The local event was sponsored by Granite City Coworking, CALNY Technologies LLC, AIAA Sacramento Section, Aerospace Museum of California, Aero Maestro, Technovate Investments LLC, ACM Chapter Sacramento, Startup Sac, and Community Observatory. Intel Corporation also provided support through employee volunteers who served as mentors to the teams on both days.
Ingrid Rosten, one of the co-leads for the event, says “It was so amazing to be part of the largest hackathon in the world! We had adults and kids alike join in the mix to make an interesting and fun-filled weekend. The ideas and solutions people created over one weekend were amazing.” As an example, the winning team, Slime Squad, built a new website that allows someone to enter their address and learn when a LANDSAT satellite will pass overhead.
“This is the fifth year we’ve held a NASA Space Apps Challenge for our region, and this year had the most enthusiasm and participation by far,” said Brett Hoffstadt, the other co-lead. “Events like these provide the spark for people and ideas to flourish. You never know what good can come from it, but we see it happen at the event and in the years ahead. We might want to consider a second venue somewhere else in the region for next year.”
Photos and videos from the event capture teams collaborating, giving presentations, and enjoying the festive atmosphere filled with science and technology. They are available to view on a Google Drive folder and YouTube channel, respectively.
Anyone interested in learning more about the event and how they might play a role in helping with next year’s event should contact Brett Hoffstadt at brett@howtobearocketscientist.com or 210-753-0843.