NASA Issues New Centennial Challenges To Spur Suborbital Rocketry
By Leonard David
Senior Space Writer
posted: 09 October 2005
02:33 pm ET

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico – NASA unveiled today two new Centennial Challenges–-both geared to stimulating new reusable suborbital rocketry, as well as help hone technology for exploration of the Moon.

The prizes represent collaboration between NASA and the X Prize Foundation, announced here during Countdown to the X Prize festivities.

NASA’s Centennial Challenges were established to conduct prize competitions in support of the Vision for Space Exploration and ongoing NASA programs. The idea is to crate novel and lower-cost solutions to engineering obstacles in civil space and aeronautics from new sources of innovation in industry, academia, and the public.

More here: http://www.space.com/news/051009_xprize_challenge.html