With submissions from over 40 countries, the winners were chosen by a jury of 15 leading architects, designers and technologists, including Chris Hadfield, Eduardo Tresoldi, David Benjamin, Chris Precht, and Sabrina Thompson.

Astronaut Chris Hadfield said: “It is only through our imaginations that we can create change. The fanciful science fiction of the future becomes the accepted reality of today, and thus the bedrock of history upon which we stand. Congratulations to all the creative contributors, you expanded our minds.”

The jury selected three prize winners and 12 honourable mentions.

First place went to Charisse Foo for ‘The Monument to the Labours’.  Charisse graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell University and is a CGI designer in New York City. The proposal explores an extensive network of half-finished and abandoned space structures being revitalized by incarcerated labourers.

Charisse Foo said: “Narrated dispassionately, ‘The Monument to the Labours’ imagines a future that has already been translated into history. In this recasting of the pioneer narrative, the first settlers of space are not merely brave explorers but also condemned convicts.

“Centering around alienation and the implications of denying humanity to the other, the story simultaneously charts the lifespan of a building: a satellite, prison, laboratory, factory, town, tomb, billboard, attraction, and symbol. These two narratives tie the privilege of dreaming to the costs of experimentation. The utopian possibilities of outer space, the great unknown, are not only the fantasies of the privileged, but also the desperate hope of the marginalized.”

Second prize was awarded to Alberto Carbonell Crespí, a young architect from Alicante, Spain, for his story ‘Memories of Dandelion’.

The story proposes a method of terraforming Mars with gigantic sparkling balloons filled with water, air and seeds to germinate the barren surface, and the first steps that humans take onto the surface without space suits.

Alberto Carbonell Crespí said: “‘Memories of Dandelion’ focuses on the liminal moment of someone “living in standby,” suspended in the vacuum. The overwhelming effect of outer space into our little conception of time and, ultimately, how the providence can drive us to an unexpected beginning.”

Third prize went to Virtual Construction Lab of Schüco for ‘Planctae’, The Virtual Construction Lab of Schüco is a multi-disciplinary office based in New York City, specializing in the design and visualization of complex facade systems. ‘Planctae’ envisions a network of deep space travellers creating a decentralized network of quantum relays — studying outer space and leaving the smallest footprint possible.

Virtual Construction Lab of Schüco added: “‘Planctae’ is inspired by the inherent virtues of the human spirit and the technological potential of virtual connectivity, centering its architectural tectonics around the needs of an augmented astronaut on a one-way mission into deep space. While advanced AI handles involuntary ship duties, the pilot interprets collected data through scientific and artistic means, virtually sharing their findings with others despite the vast distances between ships.

“Virtual immersion can never fully replace physical proximity, exacting a toll even on specially trained pilots over time, but the pursuit of discovery over colonization lends them a heroic optimism and keeps them tethered to the Earth as they venture out to new horizons.”

The jury awarded 12 honourable mentions to: Eric & Eva de Broche des Combes,  Ioanna Sotiriou, Original Elephant, Korina Filoxenidou and Mariza Tsakona, Madina Zhazylbekova, FLUX.REAL, Alexander Mills and Danielle Fountain, Linus Cheng, Kat Choate and Stephen Smolko II, Nicholas Houser and Gabriel Esquivel, Dana Salama, Zhuoneng Wang and Wai Ching Cheng.