Western Cape Education on South African learners winning International Space Settlement Design Competition
South African learners win global space design competition on debut
Seven South African high school learners from the Western Cape have made history by winning the prestigious International Space Settlement Design Competition, the world's longest-running space engineering competition for schools, at the international finals held at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Selected through the inaugural South Africa Space Design Competition at the University of Cape Town, Team ZA was the only African team in the competition and claimed victory on the country's first-ever entry.
The team members are 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) and Dean Weich (Bishops Diocesan College).
The learners joined participants from the United Kingdom, Australia, Brazil, China and the United States to form Rockdonnell, the first team in the competition's history to include representatives from every inhabited continent. Their winning proposal, Hermes, was a futuristic spacecraft designed to transport 3 000 people across the inner Solar System.
The learners played different key roles, with Qaylah Omar serving as a presenter, while Benjamin Honigwachs, Joseph Allderman and Ethan Schoombee defended the proposal before the judges. Joseph Allderman also received the Anita Gale Creative Genius Prize, one of only four awarded across the competition. Reflecting on the honour, Joseph said: “Team ZA worked so cohesively together that we all deserved this award. I was just the one who got picked to represent it.”
Acting Provincial Minister for Education, Anton Bredell, congratulated the team: "On behalf of the Western Cape Government, I congratulate these remarkable young South Africans on their achievement. Their success is a powerful reminder that South African learners have the talent, determination and creativity to compete with the very best in the world when they are given the opportunity.”
This achievement proves that South Africa's talent can compete with the very best in the world, said Jagger Cooper-Doubell, Chair and Executive Director of the South Africa Space Design Competition. “The talent was never missing in South Africa. The opportunity was.” He added that the competition provided the platform and challenge the learners needed to excel and ultimately defeat the world's best teams on South Africa's first attempt.
Following this historic success, the competition plans to expand nationally, with regional events scheduled for the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal in 2027 and ambitions to reach all nine provinces. Entries for the 2027 South African season open later this year.
Kind regards
Bronagh Hammond
Director: Communication
Directorate: Communication
Western Cape Education Department
E-mail: Bronagh.hammond@westerncape.gov.za
Website: westerncape.gov.za/education
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