Scores 

A list of all team scores from the competition round are posted to this page 48 hours after the individual teams score sheets are emailed to the team directors. Scores are typically posted to this page the Thursday following the end of the competition window.
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PRACTICE ROUND 2
QUALIFICATION ROUND 2
PRACTICE ROUND 3
QUALIFICATION ROUND 3
TEAM TOTAL ROUND SCORES (ADVANCEMENT TO SEMIFINAL ROUND)
SEMIFINAL ROUND SCORES (ADVANCEMENT TO NATIONAL FINALS)

Qualification Round 1 (QR1) Recap

SCENARIO OBSERVATIONS
SOLVING THE SCENARIO

ACADEMIC QUIZ
The average QR1 quiz score was 16.689 out of 20. Thirty-eight teams scored 20.
Study guides will continue to be available, and the quizzes will continue to be based on the content in the StellarXplorers Space Foundations course provided by Nova Space.
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Total QR1 Scores
The average total QR1 score (scenario & quiz) was 80.137.
The highest possible total score was 125.173. No team reached this score.

The top 117 teams, based on their total score from all three qualification rounds, will qualify for the Semifinal Round. Currently, less than 10 points separate 117th place from 145th place. All team scores are reset to zero for the Semifinal Round. Keep up the good work!
 
LOOKING AHEAD: PREPARING FOR PRACTICE ROUND 2
Practice Round 2 (PR2) is scheduled for November 13-16 and will focus on satellite design. Teams will select components to go on a satellite, such as transmitters, receivers, sensors, etc. Each component will have multiple options with each having its own performance, mass, price, and availability. The team’s job is to select the best combination to meet mission requirements. Mission requirements may include launch vehicle capability (launch mass), budget and schedule. We will identify the orbit where the satellite will be placed by the rocket. Teams will use STK to generate sensor access times and evaluate component performance capability to pick the best satellite components.
 
It is recommended that teams prepare by trying the satellite design sample scenario available at https://www.stellarxplorers.org/training.html. There are also additional third-party resources available (see link at the bottom of the training webpage).
 
There is no Academic Quiz for PR2.

IMPORTANT REMINDER – DESTRUCTION OF STLX COMPETITION MATERIALS ​
All copies of the QR1 competition scenario booklet, score sheets, STK VDFs, round emails, and team-produced documents must be collected and destroyed, or deleted, prior to the start of Practice Round 2 on November 13, 2025. 

Continuing to hold onto materials from previous rounds, after the start of a new round, is a violation of the StellarXplorers Rule Book. Help us to ensure the integrity of the Competition by complying with these directions.   ​
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PROCEDURAL OBSERVATIONS
​​Team Numbers
Your team number (STLX12-XXXX) is very important during the StellarXplorers competition. It is how we track your results, store your files, and most importantly grade your solutions.

In QR1, 68 teams generated 86 instances of bad team numbers on either the start form, academic quiz, VDF upload submission, or VDF file naming.

Our automated grading system looks for your team number in order to launch the scoring process. It looks for precisely 11 characters (STLX12-XXXX) to find and score your file. If there are more than or less than these 11 characters, the grader will abort the scoring process for all teams, and we must manually repair the incorrect team number. For example, say your team number is STLX12-0987.  Typing anything other than STLX12-0987 (even accidentally putting an extra space in front of the team number) will cause the grader to abort. The team number format is case sensitive, so be sure to use UPPERCASE letters. 

With regard to VDF uploads, it's important that teams follow the directions provided when it comes to doing their upload and naming their files, otherwise it will cause the grader to fail. The upload process generates the following unique file naming convention for team STLX12-0987: FirstName_LastName_UploadedFileName or QR1_STLX12-0987_QR1_STLX12-0987.vdf. The characters before the first underscore are whatever was entered in the First Name field, the next string of characters before the second underscore are from the Last Name field, and the remaining characters reflect the actual uploaded file's name. 
 
To help you avoid this mistake in the future, view the “Penalty Paper” to see a list of all the wrong ways (and the only right way) to provide your team number. This document also outlines other common penalties and how to avoid them. If you need clarification, contact [email protected].
In all future rounds, teams will be penalized 5 POINTS each time they submit something with an incorrect team number. This includes the start form, academic quiz, solution upload/submission form, and/or VDF filename. It is imperative that you provide the correct team number in the correct STLX12-XXXX format.
 
And as always, include your team number in the subject line of all messages to us. It makes it easier for us to find you in our database and to file the information that you send to us.
 
Running Systems Tool Kit (STK)
As emphasized in prior communications, teams should load STK 13.0 Premium (which includes the Planetary Data Supplement) onto their computers and test that the software is operating successfully BEFORE STARTING THE ROUND. By “before” we mean days before, and also immediately prior to starting. We cannot guarantee staff support for last-minute technical issues, and teams will not be given any time relief if they do not have STK running on their computers at the start of the competition period. If needed, sample VDFs are available with our Training Materials, and can be used to test the software.
 
For those still needing licenses, please reach out to the StellarXplorers Program Staff as soon as possible to request them.

Changing STK Fixed Variables
Teams should not change any of the Fixed Variables in STK. These variables include but are not limited to: Start Time, Stop Time, Propagator, Step Size, Coord Epoch Time, etc. Additionally, teams should not change any component on the satellite, a target, or a facility on the ground. We use a team’s VDF to determine that team’s score. Therefore, these variables must remain the same so that we can fairly evaluate every team (this is why we impose severe penalties if these items are changed). Teams should only change the orbital elements of the satellite.
 
Several teams changed the Orbit Coord System and the Propagator. These changes can happen when a team uses the STK Orbit Wizard. If you use Orbit Wizard, be sure to check that the Fixed Variables, as shown in Appendix I of the scenario booklet, have not been changed.

Incomplete Submissions
Several teams failed to submit their VDF file required for StellarXplorers staff to score their solution.
  • Eleven teams failed to submit their STK VDF solution file. Without the VDF, we have no way to score the solution because we have nothing to enter into the automatic grader that calculates the team’s score.
  • Five teams sent us the starting case scenario (the original VDF file downloaded at the start of the round). This “starting case” is guaranteed to result in a poor score and does not represent the work actually accomplished by the team.
  • Nine teams submitted non-.vdf files. Do not submit any file type other than .vdf. Files ending in .sc, .lic, .pdf, or .zip are unacceptable and cannot be scored.
  • Seven teams submitted VDFs in which they’d so drastically changed STK Fixed Variables that the automated grader couldn’t even process them for grading.

If you are one of the teams that failed to provide your correct VDF file, please send us the file via email so our competition staff can calculate what your score would have been.
  
​StellarXplorers Space Foundations Course (Nova Space)
Please make sure your team has access to the Nova Space learning platform BEFORE starting the round. Utilization of this course is instrumental in preparing for the academic quiz. If you need help accessing the course, please contact the StellarXplorers Program Office.
 
Confirmation Emails
Team directors will receive automated confirmation emails upon submission of a team’s start form, scenario component selections (in rounds 2 and 3), and academic quiz (when applicable). We are unable to provide automated confirmation emails for receipt of VDF submissions, but the team will receive a confirmation message on the screen once the file is uploaded successfully. 
 
Confirmation emails are sent to the email address provided in the “Team Director Email” field of the forms. To ensure there’s no delay in the delivery of these automated emails, competitors should pay close attention to the email address they are providing. There were several instances of incorrect email addresses this round.
 
PR2 Prep and Start Emails
PR2’s Prep Email will be sent out at 12:00 PM ET on Tuesday, November 4 and PR2’s Start Email will be sent out at 12:00 PM ET on Wednesday, November 12 (the day prior to the start of the competition window). To prevent delays in preparing for, or starting, the round, please contact [email protected] ASAP if you haven’t received the email by 2:00 PM ET on either day.

Finalizing Team Rosters
Team rosters are now final. No changes can be made to the roster other than removal of a member for the remainder of the competition.