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  • About
    • Overview
    • People
    • Area Leaders
    • Resources
    • Documents and Reports
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
  • Education
    • Overview
    • 2023 Call for PhD Grants
  • Industry
    • Overview
    • Affiliates
    • Getting Involved
    • Host an MIT Student
  • Innovation
    • MIT Portugal Innovation Workshop 2025
    • MIT Portugal Innovation Workshop Reunion 2025
  • Research
    • Overview
      • Climate Science & Climate Change
      • Earth Systems: Oceans to Near Space
      • Digital Transformation in Manufacturing
      • Sustainable Cities
    • Competitive Calls
      • 2025 Call for Seed Grant Proposals
    • Funded Projects
      • 2024 @PT Call for Exploratory Proposals
      • 2024 Seed Projects
      • Flagship Projects
      • 2021 Exploratory Projects
  • Idea Sprints
  • Annual Conference
    • Annual Conference 2024
  • News + Events
    • Overview
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Idea Sprints

2nd Annual Blue Origin Student Payload Competition

Current phase: Finalist Team Announced! Congratulations to the finalist Team MiFiRE on being selected to represent the MIT Portugal Program in space!

Competition Background

MIT Portugal is going BACK TO SPACE! The MIT Portugal NanoLab Student Payload Competition was launched in January 2020 for Portuguese university students. We’ve partnered with Blue Origin to include a nano-experiment on the New Shepard (launch date TBD).

Competition Rules:

  • Nano-experiments must be 10.16 x 10.16 x 20.32 cm with a total mass of less than 0.5 kg
  • No leakage
  • Minimal electromagnetic output
  • No stored energy
  • No hazardous chemicals or biohazards
  • Liquids under 5 mL
  • All applications materials must be in ENGLISH only

Application Files:

  • Competition Entry Form
  • Blue Origin MPP Payload Guidelines 

Competition Announcement in Portugal

Jan 21, 2020

First Round Entry Form & Proposals Due

Feb 21, 2020

Second round team selections announced

March 9, 2020

Second round due (with MIT team members input)

April 23, 2020

Finalist Team Announced

May 4, 2020

Initial Payload Data Packages Due from finalist team

L-5mo (July 1)

Interface Control Document drafted

L-4mo (Aug 1)

Final Payload Data Packages Due 

L-3mo (Sept 1)

Final Hardware due

L-1mo (Nov 1)

Flight (L – 0)

Flight (L-0)

A special thanks to Blue Origin for this exciting opportunity!

"The payload competition was the ticket to our first adventure into space. If you have an idea, this is a spectacular opportunity to put it into practice and send it up there, representing MIT Portugal in the process. For me, it was both hard work and a dream come true!"
Lígia Fonseca Coelho
IST, Lisbon
"This was a great opportunity to get a taste of what it means to work on projects that involve academia, industrial partners and outreach/communications teams. Additionally, it is a multidisciplinary cooperative effort between international students. In my opinion, these are more than enough reasons for students to apply, even just for the personal growth. The opportunity to work with a partner across the ocean on a very interesting project and see to it materialize on the launch date was amazing and something I will always cherish!"
Manuel Almeida
IST, Lisbon
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Idea Sprint

2025 Marine Robotics Summer School

Applications Closed

Idea Sprint

MIT Portugal Innovation Workshop 2025

Applications Closed

Idea Sprint

MIT Portugal Innovation Workshop 2024

Applications Closed

Idea Sprint

2024 Marine Robotics Summer School

Applications Closed

Idea Sprint

2023 Marine Robotics Summer School

Applications Closed

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MIT Portugal Program
Universidade do Minho
Campus de Azurém,
4804 – 533 Guimarães
Portugal
info@mitportugal.org

MIT Portugal Program
77 Massachusetts Ave.
Building 33-326 
Cambridge, MA 02139
mitportugal@mit.edu

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