NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

1

NASA FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES

www.nasa.gov

NASA Flight Opportunities

Session will start at 10 a.m. PT – Please mute your microphone and turn off your camera

Community of Practice Webinar Series – January 10, 2024

Anh Nguyen, Ph.D., NASA Headquarters

Danielle McCulloch, NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center

Christibelle Villena, Carrot

NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

1

NASA FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES

Welcome to the Community of Practice Webinar Series!

First, a bit of housekeeping...

• Please mute your microphone and turn off your camera

• Today’s session will be recorded

• Recordings for this and all future sessions will be posted on the Flight 

Opportunities website

• Please engage!

• Use the chat throughout the session to ask questions

2

2
NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

2

NASA FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES

Welcome to the Community of Practice Webinar Series!

Flight Opportunities hopes these webinars will enable researchers, 

program staff, and flight providers to connect informally and share 

information

• Designed to distill and share the most important lessons learned to:

• Increase the impact of suborbital flight tests

• Transfer best practices

• Optimize the experience of current and prospective program participants

• Part of a broad effort to capture, organize, and communicate lessons learned 

by suborbital researchers

• An opportunity to hear from subject matter experts on best practices for 

preparing for suborbital flight tests

3

3

NASA FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES

Join us for future Community of Practice webinars!

Subscribe to our newsletter for 

updates on future webinars!

https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/fli

ghtopportunities/newsletter

4

Future webinars

• Webinars are held 1st Wednesday of each 

month at 10 a.m. PT

• Topics will be announced in the Flight 

Opportunities newsletter and website

• Session recordings will be posted on the 

Flight Opportunities website

• Let us know session topics you would like 

to see covered

4
NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

3

NASA FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES

Today’s Speakers

5

Anh Nguyen

Program Portfolio Integrator

Flight Opportunities

Danielle McCulloch

Program Manager

Flight Opportunities

Christibelle Villena

Chief Program Officer

Carrot

5

NASA TechLeap Prize

Universal Payload Interface Challenge 

Flight Opportunities Community of Practice Webinar

January 10, 2024

Anh Nguyen – Program Portfolio Integrator, NASA Flight Opportunities

Danielle McCulloch – Program Manager, NASA Flight Opportunities

6
NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

4

FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES & SMALL SPACECRAFT TECHNOLOGY PORTFOLIO

Portfolio speed, flexibility, and access to a wide array of commercial suborbital / orbital capabilities 

provides opportunity to rapidly address technology gaps and emerging needs.

Flight Opportunities and Small Spacecraft Technology seek to change the pace of space 

exploration, discovery and space commerce.

To ensure American leadership in space...

WHY?

...and increase the rate of scientific 

discoveries within our lifetimes.

7

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

COMMERCIAL VEHICLES MAKE FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES POSSIBLE

8

Rocket-Powered Vehicles High-Altitude Balloons Parabolic Flights

Vertical Takeoff Vertical 

Landing (VTVL) Vehicles

Orbital Platforms 

Hosting Payloads

Credits: Firefly (formerly Spaceflight, Inc.)

Credits: NASA

Credits: Lauren Hughes/NASA

Credits: World View Enterprises Credits: University of California, Berkeley

8
NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

5

Innovators from:

• Universities

• Industry

• Non-profit research institutes

• NASA

• Other government agencies

Advanced 

Manufacturing

Entry, Descent, and 

Landing (EDL) and 

Precision Landing

Advanced Habitation 

Systems

Advanced Materials, 

Structures, and 

Construction

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Thermal Protection 

Systems and 

Thermal Management

Small Spacecraft 

Systems

In-Situ Resource 

Utilization (ISRU)

Cryogenic Fluid 

Management

WHAT DOES FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES SUPPORT?

9

9

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NASA TechLeap Overview

10

• Challenges

• No. 1: Autonomous Observation Challenge (Up to $500k Prize)

• Autonomously detect, locate, track, and collect data on transient terrestrial events such as aerosol dispersion in the atmosphere or 

maintain line of sight communication with an object on the lunar surface

• No. 2: Nighttime Precision Landing Challenge (Up to $650k Prize)

• Develop sensing systems that can detect hazards from an altitude of 250 meters or higher and process the data in real time to 

generate a terrain map suitable for facilitating safe landing of a spacecraft in the dark

• No. 3: Universal Payload Interface Challenge (Up to $650k Prize)

• Reduce the cost and complexity of payload integration through an optimized interface system that enables rapid and seamless 

integration of diverse payloads onto various flight vehicles, including suborbital, orbital, and planetary lander vehicles.

• Eligibility

• US Citizens and Permanent Residents

• Organizations Must Be Incorporated & Operating in US

• Individuals & Teams Permitted; Lead must be US Person, 18+

See website for full eligibility details

• Rapidly identify and develop technologies of significant interest to 

the agency through a series of challenges

10
NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

6

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NASA TechLeap Prize – No. 3 Universal Payload Interface Challenge

11

• Challenge Statement: This challenge aims to reduce the cost and complexity of payload 

integration through an optimized interface system that enables easy integration of diverse 

payloads onto various flight vehicles, including suborbital, orbital, and planetary lander vehicles.

• Technologies Sought: Robust universal payload interface solutions that are low-cost and 

modular to enable straightforward, rapid payload integration and reduction of overall time-toflight. An ideal interface system would also satisfy scenarios where payloads require multiple 

flight tests.

• Schedule: 

• Competition launch – October 16, 2023

• Registration deadline – February 1, 2024

• Application deadline – February 22, 2024

• Winners selected – June 2024

• Distribution of first prize ($200k) – June 2024

• System Build Round 1 ($200k) – October 2024 

• Site Visit and Evaluation 

• System Build Round 2 ($100k) – March 2025

• Site Visit and Evaluation 

• Performance Incentive Phase (Up to $150k) – August 2025

• Universal payload interface system integration with a payload and vehicle assigned by NASA for flight testing

11

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

OBJECTIVES

• Enable rapid and accessible transition of payloads from the bench to flight vehicle integration for testing on 

multiple different commercial flight vehicle types (e.g., suborbital, orbital, lander)

• Enable payloads to be as vehicle-independent as possible to facilitate rapid integration

• Enable early payload development without vehicle interface knowledge

• An ideal universal payload interface system would not dictate, suggest, or attempt to predict all possible use 

cases to ensure the most extensible application

• Rationale should be provided on how the proposed universal payload interface system satisfies the 

challenge objectives

INTERFACE ELEMENTS

• Minimum required capabilities and potential additional interface capabilities are listed in the Technical 

Guidelines

• Systems providing additional capabilities beyond the minimum requirements (including those not listed as 

examples) may be scored higher. Refer to the Scoring Rubric for more details.

• Rationale should be provided for all proposed universal payload interface system elements.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES

12
NASA TechLeap Universal Payload Interface Challenge

Anh Nguyen

Danielle McCulloch

Christibelle Villena

Community of Practice Webinar Series

NASA Flight Opportunities

https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/

7

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

TECHLEAP CHALLENGE

13

Visit https://www.upic.nasatechleap.org/ for 

challenge registration and additional information

KEY DATES

• Registration Deadline: Thursday, February 1, 2024, no later than 

5:00 PM Eastern 

• Applications Deadline: Thursday, February 22, 2024, no later than 

5:00 PM Eastern

• Winners Selected: June 2024

Email inquiries to: questions@nasatechleap.org

13

NASA FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES

14 www.nasa.gov

Thank you! 

Flight Opportunities website: 

http://nasa.gov/flightopportunities

Contact us:

NASA-FlightOpportunities@mail.nasa.gov

14