Event Tag: Texas

2026 International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC)

The 2026 International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) will take place in Midland, Texas from June 15–20, 2026.

The Experimental Sounding Rocket Association (ESRA) is a non-profit organization founded in 2003 for the purpose of fostering and promoting engineering knowledge and experience in the field of rocketry. ESRA’s mission is to provide safe and exciting opportunities for academic groups to compete in aerospace challenges.

In 2006, ESRA established the International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) which has since grown from a handful of U.S. based collegiate teams to welcoming over 180 collegiate teams from 22 countries on 6 different continents. During the IREC each team designs, builds, tests and launches rockets with a payload size >2kg and target altitudes of 10,000 to 100,000 feet. Rockets are typically 4 to 8 inches in diameter and 8 to 20 ft. long. Multistage rockets and all chemical propulsion types (solid, liquid, and hybrid) are allowed.

The IREC isn’t just a competition, it’s a launchpad for innovation and careers. This year, 175 teams have successfully applied and been accepted to participate in the 2026 IREC to push the limits of high-powered rocketry, applying classroom theory to real-world engineering challenges, and break new IREC records!

In partnership with the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association, AIAA is proud to support the world’s largest university rocket engineering competition.

For more information about the competition, please visit: esrarocket.org

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2026 Region IV Student Conference

Host: Rice University, Houston, Texas
Venue: Duncan Hall, Rice University

Take part in AIAA’s Regional Student Conference by presenting your research in a formal technical meeting, exchange ideas, and discuss programs with students from other universities in your region.

Please note: A high school or university student in good standing at their institution who is also an AIAA student member is eligible to submit a paper to the Regional Student Conference. The submitting and presenting author(s) must be AIAA student members. Any student may attend the Regional Student Conference but may be subjected to a higher registration fee if they are not AIAA members. Please click here for more information to join as an AIAA Student Member.

You must be attending a high school/college/university in Region IV to participate in the Region IV Student Conference. Students can petition to present at a conference outside their university’s region by emailing [email protected].

Region IV includes Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Texas. Additionally, it includes Mexico.

Cash prizes are awarded for first, second, and third place winners for each category.

Refer to the Student Conferences webpage for conference rules and FAQs.

2025 International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC)

The 2025 IREC will be hosted in Midland, Texas, from 9–14 June 2025.

ESRA hosts an International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) for over 150 student rocketry teams from across the USA and around the world. With a minimum payload size of 2.2 pounds and target altitudes of either 10,000, 30,000, or 45,000 feet above ground level. Competing rockets are typically 4 to 8 inches in diameter and 8 to 20 ft. long. Multistage rockets and all chemical propulsion types (solid, liquid, and hybrid) are allowed.

In partnership with the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association, AIAA is proud to support the world’s largest university rocket engineering competition.

For more information about the competition, please visit: www.soundingrocket.org/

Organized by

ASCENDxTexas: Accelerating the Business of Space Exploration

Join us in Houston for ASCENDxTexas, a new event designed to grow the Texas Space Ecosystem and our off-world future. In our first ASCEND event of 2022, we are excited to be working with our partners to bring the Texas space community together.

Gain clarity on the lunar exploration market – supply, demand, materials, current status, and future opportunities.

DISCOVER opportunities approaches, and investments for space exploration and where your business fits within this ecosystem.

EXPLORE commercialization efforts and the needed support and dialogue to move forward in the next 10 years

LEARN how NASA is evolving its approach to industry by simplifying the “how” and delivery of business engagements and recasting the feedback loop to enable faster outcomes.

IDENTIFY technology gaps and complexity, and how to address these gaps with novel or emerging techniques.

Attendees will gain in-depth insights about Artemis and NASA’s other signature programs, and how these programs may serve as the anchor customer for future commercial missions to LEO, the moon, Mars, and beyond. Meet other companies based in Texas and learn how they’re accelerating our progress toward an off-world future.

Powered by AIAA, ASCEND, which stands for Accelerating Space Commerce, Exploration, and New Discovery, is the world’s premier collaborative, outcomes-driven, interdisciplinary community designed to accelerate the building of our off-world future.

Throughout the year, the ASCENDx Series accelerates momentum toward the fall ASCEND apex event. ASCENDxTexas is an open summit bringing together a broad community of stakeholders from NASA, industry, academia, government and other stakeholders to help build connections into partnerships, and engage in continuous discussions related to strategy building, development, and implementation of human and robotic lunar exploration. This event will focus on impactful outcomes and identifying opportunities holistically as a mission rather than a solution.

33rd AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Meeting

The 33rd AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Meeting, hosted by the American Astronautical Society (AAS) and cohosted by American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) will be held 14–19 January, in Austin, Texas. The conference is organized by the AAS Space Flight Mechanics Committee and the AIAA Astrodynamics Technical Committee.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update

The conference organizers have decided to hold the 33rd AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Meeting in person at The LINE Austin hotel in Austin, TX.

Please monitor the conference website for updates on the conference guidelines. We will abide to any applicable local, state, and federal laws.

ASCENDxTexas: Pathways for Our Success: Breaking Barriers & Accelerating the Space Ecosystem

2023 ASCENDxTexas brings together the space community to share best practices, innovative strategies, and opportunities to succeed in today’s global market and our off-world future. Agenda highlights include outcome-focused conversations, updates on signature space programs, along with multiple on and off-site networking opportunities.

Breaking barriers and accelerating our off-world exploration

DISCOVER the evolving partnerships between all stakeholders for streamlined collaboration to achieve the common goal.

IDENTIFY solutions to barriers, and create enhanced strategies for successful partnerships.

EXPLORE new players and partners that will be a part of tomorrow’s space ecosystem.

LEARN how commercialization will advance, enable, and support space ecosystems, future capabilities, and long-term exploration.

DEVELOP the pathways forward—help start, build, and be a part of the process toward new and expanded outcomes.

Preserving the Race for Space: From the Earth to the Moon and Beyond

Join us in Houston, Texas for a symposium on preservation of Space Exploration Resources! The NPS National Center for Preservation Technology and Training (NCPTT) is partnering with Space Center Houston, Cane River National Heritage Area, and NASA to host a three-day symposium, which will bring together professionals with a stake in preserving what space exploration has left and is leaving behind. The symposium will feature talks held at the Space Center Houston, in Houston, TX, and tours of Johnson Space Center.

Registration costs:
Regular Registration: $399
Speaker Registration: $299
Student Registration: $199