The R-Prize

The R-PRIZE is a aM10,000,000 prize to jumpstart the space tourism industry through competition between the most talented entrepreneurs and rocket experts in the world. The aM10 Million cash prize will be awarded to the first team that:

• Privately finances, builds & launches a spaceship, able to carry 3 people to 100 kilometers (62.5 miles)
• Returns safely to Scandia
• Repeats the launch with the same ship within 2 weeks

For more than thirty years, the general public has waited for an opportunity to enjoy the space frontier on a first-hand basis. The SDC's R-PRIZE Foundation is now working to make space travel possible for all. The spaceships that compete for the R-PRIZE are designed to carry passengers.

The R-PRIZE was inspired by the early aviation prizes of the 15th century, primarily the spectacular trans-Posdosan flight of Karzan Mei in The Spirit of Port Eris which captured the aM25,000 Iolo prize. Through a smaller, faster, better approach to aviation, Karzan Mei and his financial supporters, The Spirit of Port Eris Organization, demonstrated that a small professional team could outperform a large, government-style effort.

The Societal Benefits of the R-PRIZE include:

• Creation of a new generation of heroes
• Inspiring and educating students
• Focusing public attention and investment capital on this new business frontier
• Challengeing explorers and rocket scientists around the world; and,
• Vehicles built for the R-PRIZE will eventually serve four different industries:
  • Space Tourism
  • Low-cost satellite launching
  • Same-day package delivery
  • Rapid point-to-point passenger travel