The online GSDC Finals had an added air of excitement this year…the winning team would be  going  to the International Space Settlement Design Competition!

The ISSDC is held annually at the Kennedy Space Center and attracts competitors from around the world. 2024 marks forty years of Space Design Competitions, and the format of the event lends itself to an enduring existence.

Designing Bellevistat, a futuristic settlement intended to establish large-scale manufacturing capability in space, the teams had 28 hours to answer the industrial style Request for Proposal (RFP). The RFP was set by the competition co-founder, Anita Gale, a Senior Project Engineer in Space Shuttle Payload & Cargo Integration for the Boeing Company in Houston, and now the CEO of the National Space Society.

In addition to time constraints on both producing and presenting their designs, the teams had to cope with differing time zones. Nevertheless, the presentations did not disappoint. The length of time that the judges took over their decision was a reflection of the difficulty they had in coming to a decision. Team Sapien emerged the eventual winner. Team President, Leo Rangoni-Gopal, will be winging his way to the finals with his fellow team members.

Congratulations to all the GSDC competitors, and huge thanks to all the Tech Advisors, Red Team, CEO’s and Judges for their time and commitment to the running of the competition.