Sharjah, Dubai, Al Ain, and Muscat—September 2026

This year’s NASA Space Apps challenges are now live for participants in Sharjah, Dubai, Al Ain, and Muscat, with team formation officially open marking a new stage in a challenge whose registration launched on August 26, 2026.

This milestone marks a key stage in the 15th edition of the Challenge, held this year under the theme “The Next Frontier,” with participation from more than 17 space agency partners worldwide, including the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, representing the UAE among the Challenge’s official global partners. As the world’s largest hackathon of its kind, NASA Space Apps invites participants from diverse backgrounds coders, designers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and storytellers alike to use NASA’s open data to build solutions for real-world challenges on Earth and in space.

With this stage now open, participants in Sharjah, Dubai, Al Ain, and Muscat can:

• Explore this year’s officially announced challenges and choose the track that best fits their skills and interests.
• Begin forming their teams, with each team welcoming up to 6 members.
• Complete registration through the official NASA Space Apps Challenge the website ahead of the Challenge’s next stages.
• Prepare for the full Challenge Statements, releasing October 28, 2026, ahead of the hackathon on November 14–15, 2026.

The announcement of this year’s challenges and the opening of team formation reflect the growing momentum of the NASA Space Apps Challenge across the UAE and Oman, as teams get ready to explore “The Next Frontier,” where discovery awaits, from their own backyard to the edges of the universe.

To register and learn more about the official challenges, visit https://www.spaceappschallenge.org/2026/