Caritas Lebanon Youth and NASA Space Apps Lebanon represented by the Local Lead Mr. Antoine Tannous held an award ceremony to celebrate and honor the Lebanese Space Apps teams from management, expert volunteers, collaborators, and the Lebanese winner team “Aberration” who participated in the 2022 NASA SpaceApps challenge. The Lebanese team was selected among the top 25 best projects in the world with an Honorable Mention. Three teams made it to the top 100, in the presence of Caritas Lebanon’s HR Director Mr. Georges Abi Hanna representing President Father Michel Abboud, the CRDP HOD Dr. Blanche Abi Assaf, the Director of Admissions at NDU Joyce Menassa on behalf of NDU representing Dr. Farhat and Caritas Lebanon Youth’s team.
During the event, the local lead of NASA Space Apps Lebanon, the Ambassador of Conrad Foundation in the Middle East region and the Director of ISEF in Lebanon Mr. Antoine Tannous announced that he is working on a “STEM Educational System that will involve Caritas and many other alliances, in collaboration with CRDP and the Ministry of Education.” He added: Currently, a draft is being developed for the year 2023 and the main objective of the projects is to promote a system for the brain development among the Lebanese youth, including those in schools and universities. The ultimate goal is to create a better Lebanon through the development of stronger and more capable minds.
Each year, NASA’s International Space Apps Challenge, or Space Apps, engages thousands of people around the world to work with the agency’s open-source data in a 48-hour sprint. Since its start in 2012, Space Apps has grown from 25 local events in 17 countries to more than 250 local events in 90 countries and territories. In 2022, the program engaged 28,000 people. Teams of technologists, scientists, designers, entrepreneurs, artists, and others collaborate to answer some of the most pressing challenges on Earth and in space.ESA (European Space Agency), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Canadian Space Agency, Australian Space Agency, Brazilian Space Agency, National Space Activities Commission of Argentina, Paraguayan Space Agency, South African National Space Agency and the Bahrain National Space Agency will join NASA to extend collaboration in the Space Apps Challenge.
Space Apps inspires local communities to come together and think creatively. A panel of Lebanese experts selects the winning teams, and awards include an invitation to visit a rocket launch in the United States. Space Apps is managed by NASA’s Earth Science Division.
Lebanon has made international historic accomplishments in only two years. Reaching Space is not a dream anymore. The Lebanese team led by Mr. Antoine Tannous is going to send the Lebanese Cedar to space very soon.