Space has long been a part of Aviation Week’s DNA, bringing together government, industry and supply chains through information, connections and insights. Decades before “Space Technology” was added to the title of our flagship publication in 1958, our editors were excited by research into liquid-propellant rockets. “Whether or not you hold with the Buck Rogers school of thought that foresees interplanetary navigation in the 25th century on par with the transcontinental trips of the 20th, you cannot laugh off Professor Robert Goddard’s work as too visionary to rate serious attention,” the magazine’s editors wrote in a 1936 editorial.
Interplanetary travel with humans still has not been achieved, but it is not science fiction anymore. Space has reached a tipping point of acceleration, turbocharged by technological leaps, entrepreneurial genius and a dramatic reduction in launch costs.
A new space economy has arrived, and it is vibrant. It is also daunting. From lunar operations to Mars missions, NASA has identified nearly 200 capability gaps facing the space industry.
The Aviation Week Space Tech Challenge Awards, launching in partnership with Space Tech Expo USA, aim to address those gaps by connecting execution-ready innovations with government agencies, prime contractors and commercial operators.
- Learn more about the Space Tech Challenge Awards
Developed by an advisory board of tech and business leaders from across the space industry, in collaboration with our editors, the awards will focus on four priority areas: Colonization, Industrialization, Commercialization and Protection & Defense. Details about each category and how to submit nominations appear on our Space Tech Challenge Awards landing page, which can be accessed via the QR code on this page.
Nominations are open through Feb. 28, 2026. They will be evaluated by a team of judges drawn from industry. Finalists will be announced in April and invited to showcase their innovations at a special pavilion at Space Tech Expo USA, an annual event expected to draw more than 4,000 attendees to Anaheim, California. At the pavilion, finalists can exhibit their work, present onstage and network with potential customers.
Winners will be announced at the show on June 3, 2026, and they will be highlighted across our extensive digital and print platforms, which reach 1.3 million professionals and leaders in 180 countries. That breadth will help the Space Tech Challenge Awards reach across the entire aerospace supply chain—space, defense and commercial—and into relevant industries that are served by our parent company, Informa, including advanced manufacturing, energy and storage, medical tech, big tech, automotive, construction and many others.
Nearly six decades after the Apollo program landed astronauts on the Moon, the space industry is poised for another breakout.
The Space Tech Challenge Awards aim to put a spotlight on the innovations that are underpinning this new era and make connections that will speed up their progression. We invite your participation.
Related Content
