Congratulations Spring 2025 Plant the Moon / Plant Mars Challenge Winners!

The Spring 2025 season of the Plant the Moon / Plant Mars Challenge (PTMC) once again included thousands of student scientists from around the world developing innovative experiments to help NASA determine how crops grow in lunar and Martian soil. The program is an initiative of the Institute of Competition Sciences supported 30 NASA Space Grant Consortia including a six-state regional expansion initiative led by Virginia Space Grant Consortium and supported by the NASA Office of STEM engagement, the NASA Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI), the National FFA Organization, and multiple state 4-H organizations. The Plant the Moon Challenge is an international STEM competition that invites students of all ages to explore the possibilities of growing crops in lunar or Martian soil simulants. It brings STEM and agriculture together in an exciting, hands-on challenge-based learning project for students and is closely tied to NASA’s Artemis program aiming to return astronauts to the Moon and establish sustainable lunar exploration.

By participating in the challenge, students contribute to real-world research that could support future space missions. Each team receives a lunar or Martian soil simulant package, including essential tools like pH meters and planting pots. Over an eight-week growing period, teams design and conduct experiments to test plant growth in these challenging conditions. Their findings are evaluated by a panel of NASA scientists and industry experts, who select the most innovative and scientifically rigorous projects for awards. This year, two top high school Grand Champion teams were awarded a trip to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center to participate in a PTMC Symposium where they will join two Best-in-Show middle school teams from the NASA Space Grant Regional Expansion Project and have the chance to meet with NASA scientists and present their research.

Beyond competition, the challenge serves as a powerful STEM education tool, engaging students in hands-on scientific inquiry, data analysis, and problem-solving. It fosters curiosity about space exploration and encourages young minds to think critically about the future of sustainable agriculture beyond Earth.

Join us in celebrating the creativity and scientific accomplishments of our latest cohort of moon botanists!

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National FFA Organization Award

The Plant the Moon Challenge is an official endorsed program of the National FFA Organization. This partnership encourages FFA clubs to participate in the Plant the Moon Challenge to gain new skills at the intersection of STEM and agriculture. Each PTMC season, one team is selected as the National FFA Organization Best-in-Show award winner. The Spring 2025 season winner is:

Team: Sigma Sprouts, from Midlothian, Virginia
Coach: Colleen Irby
Project: Investigating the effects of human hair as a soil amendment to improve lunar regolith soil conditions for bok choy plants

   

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PTMC Jr. Division: Elementary and Middle School Best in Show

Elementary Division Winners

Team: Project Planet, from Seochogu, South Korea
Coach: Isaac Yoo
Project: What conditions are best for growing plants in Mars soil?

Team: The Lunar League, from Cedar Falls, Iowa
Coach: David Voves
Project: Radish Growth in Moon Simulant

Team: The Baddiez, from Cedar Falls, Iowa
Coach: Ben Olsen
Project: Layered vs Mixed Soils

Team: CosmoLab, Santa Clara, California
Coach: Xuejing Zhang
Project: Growth of spinach, tomato, bell pepper, and lettuce in lunar simulant

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Middle School Division Best in Show Winners

Team: Smithtown Academy Space Farmers, from Lost Nation, Iowa
Coach: Jessica Ihns
Project: How do different colors of grow lights affect plants grown in 50% soil and 50% moon regolith?

Team: Club La Ciencia es Divertida, from Canóvanas, Puerto Rico
Coach: Lorna Ortiz
Project: Sunflower microgreens on the moon: Growth evaluation in simulated lunar regolith and terrestrial soil mixtures under different irrigation levels

Team: Bio-Cosmos Crew, from Mechanicsville, Virginia
Coach: Kara Zedaker
Project: Utilizing various amendments in lunar regolith

Team: Bruno Martians, from Chicago, Illinois
Coach: Karoline Towner
Project: Growing Spinach in Martian Soil

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High School Division Winners

High school teams were recognized across four categories, and one team was selected as the Grand Prize Winner to attend the National Symposium Event in June at the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex.

Best in Show – Experimental Design
Team: Team 2, from Chantilly, Virginia
Coach: Mike Thornton
Project: An Analysis of Azotobacter vinelandii and Its Effect on the Fertility of the Lunar Simulant

Best in Show – Crop Growth
Team: CCHS Elites, from Saint Matthews, South Carolina
Coach: Charlene Lewis
Project: Effect of Amending Lunar Regolith Simulant with Organic Compost Mixed with Potting Soil and Peat Moss on the Growth of Miner’s Lettuce (Claytonia Perfoliata)

Best in Show – Evaluation of Results
Team: Academic Magnet HS, from North Charleston, South Carolina
Coach: Maria Desbrow
Project: Enhancing Early Plant Growth in Regolith: Evaluation of Germination Methods, Growth Media, Pre-Planting Treatments, and Alternative Watering Techniques

Best in Show – Innovation
Team: Aquatic Agriculturists, from Leesburg, Virginia
Coach: Amy Goodyear
Project: How well will Water Lilies (Nymphaea tuberosa) grow in lunar regolith?

Grand Prize Winner – High School Division
Team: D.A.V.E., from Vancouver, Washington
Coach: Arran Fagan
Project: Effect of Earthworms on Achillea millefolium (Common Yarrow) Plant Growth

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Undergraduate Division Winners

Undergraduate teams were also recognized in three categories, and one team was selected as the Grand Prize Winner to receive paid registration to a science or space conference of their choice.

Best in Show – Experimental Design
Team: VAIAL Team 5, from Vellore, India
Coach: Parthasarathi Theivasigamani
Project: Rooting Beyond Earth: Enhancing Basil Cultivation in Martian Regolith Using Biofertilizers and Organic Amendments

Best in Show – Innovation
Team: VAIAL Team 4, from Vellore, India
Coach: Parthasarathi Theivasigamani
Project: An analysis to Enhancing Spinach Growth and Yield in Lunar Regolith using Nano supplement against Salt Stress

Best in Show – Evaluation of Results
Team: DelVal, from Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Coach: Michael Farbotnik
Project: Rooting for Mars: Exploring amending Martian soil and its effects on bulk density and radish growth, leaf number, overall health, and taproot weight

Grand Prize Winner – Undergraduate Division
Team: The Plantstronauts, from Monterey, California
Coach: Gabriel Chavez
Project: An analysis of simulant soil composition’s effect on Pleurotus ostreatus growth

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Thank you to our partners and supporters—you’re out of this world!

We extend our heartfelt thanks to the 24 Space Grant Consortia who supported teams this season.

A sincere thank you to our Science Advisory Board and judging committee for their dedication, insight, and thoughtful feedback throughout the Challenge. Your participation in the Closing Symposium provided invaluable commentary for student teams. Watch the recording!

Special thanks to our Challenge partners:

Flinn Scientific, for providing pH strips to PTMC teams

Soil Master, for providing pH meters to PTMC Jr. teams

Back to the Roots, for providing seed packets for student experiments

 

Congratulations to all teams, coaches, and participants. Your work is advancing the science of space farming and inspiring the next generation of aerospace and agriculture experts. We can’t wait to see what you grow next!