South African high school team wins global space design contest
Seven learners from Western Cape schools played a central role in Team SA’s unexpected triumph at the International Space Settlement Design Competition, held at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The squad was selected during a national contest hosted at the University of Cape Town and represented the country as the only African delegation in the international field.
The South African contingent, making its first appearance at the long-running student space engineering event, was part of an international coalition called Rockdonnell. The group brought together young entrants from every inhabited continent and presented a conceptual spacecraft named Hermes, designed to transport 3,000 people across the inner Solar System.
Organisers and the learners said the project combined technical design, economics and policy planning under intense time pressure. Roles were split across the team with pupils taking responsibility for engineering, presentation and defence of the proposal before panels of aerospace professionals.
"Team SA worked so cohesively together that we all deserved this award. I was just the on"
The quoted reflection came from one of the learners after the victory. The team included:
| Learner | School |
|---|---|
| Zayaan Abdurahman | Mondale High School |
| Joseph Allderman | Westerford High School |
| Benjamin Honigwachs | Bishops Diocesan College |
| Alaya Kaplen | Cannons Creek Independent School |
| Qayalah Omar | Cannons Creek Independent School |
| Ethan Schoombee | Fairmont High School |
| Dean Weich | Bishops Diocesan College |
Beyond the team accolade, one learner received individual recognition. Joseph Allderman was awarded the Anita Gale Creative Genius Prize, one of only four such honours handed out across all competing schools.
Significance for local education and STEM
Educators and organisers described the achievement as a boost for the province’s profile in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The victory marks a rare instance of South African learners beating long-established international programmes on their first attempt.
Selection of Team SA at the University of Cape Town was the culmination of the inaugural South Africa Space Design Competition. That national platform gave the learners the opportunity to practise design scenarios, teamwork and formal presentation — skills that proved decisive at the international finals.
Competition organisers emphasised the collaborative nature of the winning project. Pupils from different schools were required to integrate engineering solutions with social, economic and logistical planning to produce a credible concept for long-duration human space travel.
- First international appearance: Team SA’s debut at the global contest resulted in a first-place award.
- Intercontinental collaboration: The South African cohort joined peers from the UK, US, Australia, Brazil and China to form Rockdonnell.
- Individual honour: One learner received a top creative award among only four winners worldwide.
What this means locally
For Western Cape schools, the result highlights the value of exposure to rigorous, problem-based learning outside the standard curriculum. Educators say participation in such competitions can sharpen learners’ practical skills, improve confidence in public science engagement and strengthen prospects for tertiary study in engineering and related fields.
University involvement in the national selection process also demonstrates how tertiary institutions can act as bridges between school learners and international opportunities. The UCT-hosted event provided a platform for young South Africans to test ideas under conditions similar to those they would encounter in global STEM forums.
While the win will be celebrated across the schools involved and by families, organisers note that sustained support — in the form of mentorship, funding and access to technical resources — will be important to translate this success into longer-term pathways into aerospace and engineering careers.
The achievement places Western Cape learners prominently on an international stage and may encourage other South African schools to enter future editions of the national competition.
