Hackathons at Expanding Frontiers
At Expanding Frontiers, our hackathons empower participants to solve real-world challenges through creativity, collaboration, and innovation. These events bring together developers, designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, and visionaries of all skill levels to build impactful solutions—whether it's for space, sustainability, or community innovation. From NASA collaborations to long-term team-building opportunities, there’s something for everyone.
Code the Future: NASA Space Apps Hackathon
The NASA Space Apps Challenge is a global 3-day hackathon focused on solving big-picture problems—many beyond just STEM. Participants form teams and use NASA’s open data to create innovative solutions across broad categories like science communication, education, art, environmental issues, and more. No NASA patents are used in this one—just your skills, teamwork, and imagination.
Space Coders:
Beyond the Hackathon
The Space Coders initiative is a longer-term program designed for developers and technologists. Teams work on projects ranging from 2 to 6 months, contributing to startups or ExF ecosystem challenges. These coders often seek crowd-sourced funding to continue their work, and they serve as an extended support network for innovation beyond a traditional hackathon setting.
NASA Tech Trek Hackathons
As part of the NASA Tech Trek, these 2-day hackathons are fully funded and held in collaboration with NASA HQ and the Tech Transfer Office. Participants build solutions using actual NASA patents, applying them to themes like the Lunar Economy or Earth, Climate, and Sustainability. The program also allows teams to bring their own challenge, making it a flexible but high-impact opportunity to engage with real NASA tech.