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WINNERS ANNOUNCED:

THE 2025 MARS INNOVATION CHALLENGE

In Partnership with Janet's Planet & THRIVE on MARS

Explore Mars, Inc. proudly announces the winners of the 2025 Mars Innovation Challenge, an international STEM competition that brought together over 240 student teams from across the globe, from Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Italy, India, Ukraine, Japan, the United States, and Korea, to envision humanity’s future on the Red Planet.

The competition culminated in a three-way tie for the Overall Winner and 1st Place in the Grades 10–12 Category:

  • 🥇 1st Place: Team Artemis
  • 🥇 1st Place: Prism Borrenautas
  • 🥇 1st Place: Pupos Marte

These exceptional projects explored cutting-edge solutions including bio-shielding, sample integrity preservation, and AI-driven telemedicine, each grounded in scientific rigor, exploration ethics, and the 7 Generations Principle. These top teams will share a $1,500 cash prize and collaborate with Thrive on Mars, integrating their innovations into the online blockchain game.

In the coming weeks, each overall team winner will meet with Hunter Stanchak and his Thrive on Mars team.It may be the fall before we can coordinate Zooms with Mars experts for you and the other first-place winners, as it is the season for holidays and summer travel.

“These student teams didn’t just imagine the future of space exploration, they engineered it with heart, science, and responsibility,” said Janet Ivey-Duensing, Director of Education at Explore Mars. “We are in awe.”

🧑‍🚀 Category Winners Include:

Grades K–2

  • 🥇 1st Place: Rocket Kids – A dazzling, LED-enhanced sample return capsule with multilingual design and gel-cooled containment, rooted in NASA-aligned realism.
  • 🥈 2nd Place: Caleb Gabrielle Medina
  • 🥉 3rd Place: Georgia Gilson & Abigail Phillips

Grades 3–5

  • 🥇 Team Mars Biosphere – No-contact robotics lab, ethical planetary protection, and orbital sample analysis that rivals real-world concepts.
  • 🥈 2nd Place: Proteccion Bioespecial (tie)
  • 🥈 2nd Place: MISSION ECTO(tie)
  • 🥉 3rd Place: Las Chinampas Espiacials

Grades 6–9

  • 🥇 1st Place: Olympus XII – Leonardo Da Vinci School, Bogotá (tie)
  • 🥇 1st Place: AIM – Amanecer Subterráneo, Cartago, Colombia (tie)
  • 🥈 2nd Place: Luis Astro Galanistas (tie)
  • 🥈 2nd Place: Tales of the Red Planet – Ukraine (tie)
  • 🥉 3rd Place: 2Future – Ukraine

Grades 10–12

  • 🥇 1st Place: Team Artemis (tie)
  • 🥇 1st Place: Pupos Marte (tie)
  • 🥇 1st Place: Prism Borrenautas (tie)
  • 🥈 2nd Place: Eloa Harbour
  • 🥉 3rd Place: Astralis

More Than a Competition: A Mission

The challenge invited participants to address real-world Mars mission issues in:

  • Martian Planetary Protection
  • Human Medicine & Genetic Modifications
  • Martian Sample Return Integrity

With required elements including CAD/prototypes, working budgets, ethical feedback loops, and a video pitch, teams demonstrated exceptional academic and creative sophistication.

Participants also submitted questions to Mars experts, several of which will be featured on the upcoming Mars Innovation Challenge podcast.

Explore Mars congratulates all who participated and celebrates a rising generation of space problem-solvers.

“We delayed the announcement because of the extraordinary quality of work—we needed four rounds of review. That’s how good these students are,” said the judging panel.

As part of this exciting new chapter, Janet Ivey-Duensing, who served as President of Explore Mars from 2019–2023 and has most recently led as Educational Director, will be stepping into a strategic advisory role within the organization. A beloved and visionary leader, Janet has helped shape the Mars Innovation Challenge into a globally respected competition, inspiring thousands of students around the world to imagine their place among the stars. Succeeding her is the indefatigable and globally accomplished Prof. Javier Montiel, who now takes the helm as Director of Education at Explore Mars.

Prof. Montiel holds a Master’s degree from Full Sail University and has dedicated his career to international STEAM education and space outreach. He has connected students and faculty with NASA, collaborated with institutions in Japan and Romania, and served as an educator and speaker at the Johnson Space Center, Space Center Houston, NSTA, SXSWedu, and more. Founder of the International Aerospace Academy, and author of a bilingual children’s book about the ExoLab-11 mission, Prof. Montiel is also the recipient of numerous awards including the GFEL Top 100 Visionaries in Education, the 2024 Tony So Excellence in Education Award by the ISS National Lab, and the Hispanic Hero Award from the Brazoria County Chamber of Commerce.

Explore Mars is thrilled to welcome his expertise, passion, and international reach as the organization continues to expand the Mars Innovation Challenge and its broader educational initiatives across the globe.

The 2026 Mars Innovation Challenge will open later this year. Until then—keep reaching for the Red Planet.

2025 Mars Innovation WINNERS ANNOUNCED!
STEP 1:
Anticipate, Innovate, & Solve by selecting from one of the three topic areas below and choose one specific challenge to use for your Mars Innovation Challenge “Solution.”
STEP 2:
Set your goals, assign team roles, come up with the list of questions. Driven by the questions, decide on the materials and equipment, find mentors and devise your project flow.
STEP 3:

Prepare your team’s submission with three deliverables (below). Choose the name for your innovation solution.

STEP 4:
Submit your deliverables for your age/ challenge group, using the submission buttons on the site,  along with the Media Consent and Intellectual property form included in the Welcome Kit (requires Google account for submission). If you are unable to sign up please contact mission-contorl@exploremars.devsquad.tech and we’ll work with you to assist with your participation in the Mars Innovation Challenge.
Deliverables
  • A pitch deck presenting their innovation, including a mission statement, problem definition, proposed solution, and potential impact, that includes your visual drawing, CAD, PhET simulations or prototype. (You do not have to build a working prototype, but can make it out of recycled materials, legos, Minecraft etc..) Make sure that your submission clearly represents your innovation for a person not familiar with the subject. Provide a legend for all symbols used in your infographic materials. Explain why you chose this particular representation/prototype.  Cite all resources and reference material and list all participants names and mentor and teacher on Cover Page.

Word count requirement for different age groups: 

            1. K-2 150-200 words
            2. 3-5 250-400 words
            3. 6-9 500-750 words
            4. 10-12 1000-1200 words
  • A working budget outlining resource usage (e.g., power, technology, human labor) to help students understand the financial and logistical elements involved in real-world space exploration. You may want to use Google docs,  Excel, Power BI or other visualization software. 
  • A detailed ethical analysis with feedback loop visualization that considers the long-term effects of your proposal on both Mars and future human generations. 
  • Please record a 2-5 minute video pitch of yourself/crew explaining how your Mars Innovation Solution works, how it will be implemented, and how it has positive repercussions for humans on Earth. Reflect on how your  innovations could affect the future of Mars, Earth, and humanity. How can we ethically explore a new world while preserving its potential for future use and study? What responsibilities do we hold toward future generations of both Earth and Mars inhabitants? https://www.firstpitch.com.au/how-to-pitch.html
  • Make a list of unsolved questions (in pdf)  that you and your team want to ask an expert on the given topic that arose during the work on the project. Focus on the unknown, don’t be intimidated…ASK ANYTHING…this is how we learn and discover. Best submitted questions will be featured on the Mars Innovation Challenge podcast!
SUBMIT K-2(AGE 5-8)
SUBMIT 3-5(AGE 9-11)
SUBMIT 6-9(AGE 12-15)
SUBMIT 10-12(AGE 16-18)
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AWARDS and RECOGNITION

AWARDS: All eligible teams will receive an Explore Mars Completion Certificate. In addition, Presentations/Art/Images/Essays will be shared on social media platforms including Explore Mars and Janet’s Planet.

  • Ten semifinalists will receive a group Zoom with Mars Subject Matter Experts, and the finalist from each category will win a one-on-one virtual session with a Mars Subject Matter Expert.
  • The top five innovation challenge winners and ideas will have their videos played during the 2025 Humans to the Moon & Mars Summit (H2M2 2025).
  • The overall (1st place) winner (individual/team) of the Mars Innovation Challenge will receive a cash award of $1500 and an invitation for the student/team and one chaperone to present their winning Mars Innovation Challenge Solution in person at the 2025 Humans to the Moon & Mars Summit (H2M2 2025), May 28-29, 2025 at the National Academy of Sciences Building in Washington D.C. (Admission fees for the winning student/team and one chaperone to the H2M2 2025 conference are waived, but any and all travel, accommodations, and other expenses to attend the conference are the responsibility of the winning student/team and chaperone.)

All eligible participants are invited as guests (admission fees waived) of Explore Mars, Inc. to attend H2M2 2025!

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We are thrilled by the overwhelming brilliance of the submissions received for the Mars Innovation Challenge. The creativity and innovation demonstrated have been truly inspiring.

To ensure each entry receives the thorough evaluation it deserves, we are extending the judging period. Winners will now be announced shortly after June 15th.

Thank you for your innovative and exciting ideas. We are confident that your contributions will play a significant role in shaping the future of human exploration on Mars.

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COMPETITION JUDGING OUTLINE

40%: FEASIBILITY: Assessing how the innovation functions, aids human life on Mars, and aligns with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals for Earth's benefit.

20%: CREATIVITY: Evaluating the originality in your video presentation, branding logo, or artistic signature.

20%: QUALITY: Judging the excellence of your written essay about the Mars Innovation.

20%: APPLICABILITY: Focusing on the practicality of your design in terms of operational details, assembly processes, and addressing any potential vulnerabilities for the Thrive on Mars game.

RULES & CODE OF CONDUCT

1) Responsible AI Use: ExploreMars.Org, Thrive on Mars, and Janet's Planet acknowledge the significant role AI can play in innovation when used thoughtfully and ethically. To promote responsible AI use in the 2024 Mars Innovation Challenge, we have implemented two key requirements for teams using AI:

  1. AI Usage Transparency: Teams using AI must clearly state which AI tools they used and specify their application within their project.
  2. Reflective Briefing on AI Impact: Teams must also provide a detailed briefing that discusses their learning experiences from AI usage and how it influenced their project's development.

2) Naming Your Innovation: Each submission should have a unique name and title.

3) Originality: Entries must be original. Plagiarism or use of copyrighted material leads to disqualification.

4) Appropriate Content: No inappropriate content. Submissions that violate this rule will be ineligible and will not be considered for judging. 

5) Privacy and Safety: Do not include your full name, address, school name, phone number, or place of residence in your submission. This information should only be entered in the Media Consent Release filled out by your grown-up or guardian. Submissions will be reviewed for eligibility, compliance, privacy, and student safety prior to being displayed in the gallery.