Polar Star Award

The Polar Star Award (Polarsternpreis) – The Austrian Space Award (Der Österreichische Weltraumpreis)® – honors people who are enthusiastic about space. It has been awarded annually since 2009 for exceptional achievements in the service of European space activities to honor people who distinguish themselves through personal commitment, outstanding projects or forward-looking ideas: outstanding educational work, innovative business models, personal commitment in the space sector – that is what the Polar Star Award is about.

“Even outside of the established national space organizations, there are numerous initiatives in the space sector that are implemented by extremely committed individuals who inspire their environment for the topic,”

says OeWF Director Dr. Gernot Grömer,

“and it is precisely these outstanding people that we would like to pay our tribute to.”

POLAR STAR AWARDEES

Mike Köberl

2009 Award Winner

Space collector. Passionate collector of objects from the space sector who makes his exhibits accessible to a wide audience.

Maria Pflug-Hofmayr

2010 Award Winner

Space editor. Co-founder of Der-Orion.com and translator of “Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)” into German.

Dr. Barabara Imhof

2011 Award Winner

Space architect. She visualizes the future of people in space. Through her numerous lectures, she conveys her knowledge and enthusiasm to a broad public.

Dr. Dietmar Hager

2012 Award Winner

Traumatologist and enthusiastic astrophotographer. Not only does he inspire audiences with his lectures, he is also committed to fighting light pollution.

Dr. Mazlan Othman

2013 Award Winner

Space advocate. Former director of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs. Ms. Othman has been involved in the space sector since her student days and is one of the most respected personalities in this sector worldwide.

Prof. DI Dr. Otto Koudelka & Prof. Dr. Werner Weiss

2014 Award Winners

Otto Koudelka, head of the Institute for Communication Networks and Satellite Communications at Graz Technical University and Werner Weiss from the Institute for Astronomy at Vienna University made a significant contribution to the construction and launch of the first Austrian satellite 'TUGSAT-1/BRITE'.

Em. Univ.-Prof. Dr. jur. Christian Brünner

2015 Award Winner

Space lawyer. He is a key pioneer of space law in Austria and is particularly committed to working with young people, thereby enabling students to get started in the field.

DI Franz Viehböck

2016 Award Winner

Astronaut. He is the only Austrian astronaut and with his space mission AustroMir he fascinates and inspires young and old alike in Austria. www.franzviehboeck.com

Johannes Stübler

2017 Award Winner

Astronomer. One of his main objectives is the dissemination of basic astronomical knowledge. He is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society of London and national coordinator of the global organization “Astronomers Without Borders”. He has been promoting international cooperation between astronomers for many years.

Helmut Windhager

2018 Award Winner

Amateur astronomer. He inspires the younger generation with astronomy and explains space in an understandable way. Since 2012 he has headed the astronomy working group at the “Haus der Natur” in Salzburg and is the main initiator of the new VEGA observatory in Salzburg, one of the largest private observatories in Europe.

Dipl.-Ing. Claudia Kessler

2019 Award Winner

Entrepreneur. As a graduate engineer, she has been committed to women in technological professions in the male-dominated industry from the very beginning. From 2004 to 2018 she was CEO at HE Space. In 2009 she founded the network "Women in Aerospace Europe". In 2016 she founded the initiative "The first German female astronaut".

DI Alexander Pikhard

2020 Award Winner

Amateur astronomer and astrophotographer. President and co-founder of the Wiener Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Astronomie (Vienna Working Group for Astronomy/WAA). It is his foremost goal to present complicated scientific content in an understandable way and to pass on his enthusiasm for astronomy. www.waa.at

Thomas Grübler, MSc

2021 Award Winner

NewSpace entrepreneur. Co-founder and CEO of OroraTech | NewSpace Intelligence for a sustainable Earth. His mission: to use satellites in space to detect forest fires on Earth at an early stage. www.ororatech.com

Prof. Pascale Ehrenfreund

2022 Award Winner

Female leader in the space sector. President of the International Space University (ISU), President of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), President of the Committee of Space Research COSPAR. Chairwoman of the Board of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) from 2015-2020 and President of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) from 2013-2015.

Niklas Hedman

2023 Award Winner

Coordinator of UN space-related activities. From 2006 to 2023 at the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA). From March 2022 to September 2023 he was interim director of UNOOSA and before that head of the UNOOSA Legal and Political Affairs Division of the COPUOS Committee. Vice-Chair of the Panel on Planetary Protection of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR).

Prof. Lisa Kaltenegger

2024 Award Winner

Astrophysicist, author and speaker. Leading expert on the modeling and detection of habitable worlds. Professor at Cornell University and Director of the Carl Sagan Institute. Her research into the identification of life in the cosmos has taken her from ESA and NASA to stations in Austria, the Netherlands, Germany and Harvard. Winner of international awards such as the Heinz Meier Leibnitz Prize and the Doppler Prize. Regular speaker at events such as the Aspen Ideas Festival and TED Youth. www.lisakaltenegger.com

The Polar Star Award was awarded for the first time in 2009. The first awardee was Michael Köberl, a passionate collector of objects from the space sector who makes his exhibits accessible to a wide audience. The following year, Maria Pflug-Hofmayr, space editor, co-founder of Der-Orion.com and translator of “Astronomy picture of the day”, received the OeWF trophy. In 2011, the prize went to Barbara Imhof, who as a space architect and designer always gets even the youngest interested in space. In 2012, Dr. Dietmar Hager, trauma surgeon and enthusiastic astrophotographer, was awarded the prize. He not only inspires people with his lectures, but is also committed to combating light pollution. The 2013 anniversary Polar Star Award went to Dr. Mazlan Othman: astrophysicist. Space advocate. Director of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs. Ms. Othman has been involved in the space sector since her student days and is one of the most respected personalities in this sector worldwide. In 2014, the prize was awarded to two people for the first time: Prof. DI Dr. Otto Koudelka, Director of the Institute for Communication Networks and Satellite Communications at Graz Technical University and Prof. Dr. Werner Weiss from the Institute of Astronomy at Vienna University received the prize for their commitment, which contributed significantly to the construction and launch of the first Austrian satellite ‘TUGSAT-1/BRITE’.
On April 12, 2015, Emeritus Professor Dr. Christian Brünner received the Polar Star Award. His commitment to space law in Austria continues to inspire young students. The 8th Polar Star Award in the history of the eEWF, which was traditionally announced on April 12 during Yuris Night, went to Austria’s only astronaut, DI Franz Viehböck, who also brought the International Astronaut Congress 2016 to Vienna to mark his 25th anniversary of space flight. Franz Viehböck has been able to inspire countless people in Austria with his AustroMir mission. In 2017, the 9th Polar Star Award was awarded to Johannes Stübler, who, as chairman of the Linz Astronomical Society “Johannes Kepler”, played a key role in the construction of the Kepler Observatory in Linz and, as a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society of London and Ambassador and national coordinator of the global organization “Astronomers Without Borders,” has been promoting international cooperation between astronomers for many years. The 10th Anniversary Polar Star Award went to Ing. Helmut Windhager, head of the Astronomy Working Group at the Haus der Natur in Salzburg. As astronomical project manager at the VEGA Observatory, he played a leading role in the construction of Europe’s largest and most modern private observatory, which opened in Salzburg in August 2018. In 2019, the initiator of “The First German Astronaut” and co-founder of “Women in Aerospace Europe,” Claudia Kessler, received the prize.
In 2020, President and co-founder of WAA Alexander Pikhard received the Polar Star Award. He inspires many people with countless lectures and astrophotography. In 2021, CEO and co-founder of OroraTech | NewSpace Intelligence for a sustainable Earth Thomas Grübler received the Austrian Space Award. Thanks to his personal commitment, the innovative idea of detecting forest fires from space turned into a company he runs together with his co-founders. In 2022, the Polar Star Award was awarded to Prof. Pascale Ehrenfreund. She has been involved in ESA and NASA astronomy and planetary missions for three decades, as well as in experiments in low Earth orbit and on the International Space Station. She has shown that a scientific research career can lead to becoming one of the few female leaders in the space sector. In 2023, the Austrian Space Award went to Niklas Hedman. As the organizer of the conferences of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), Niklas Hedman played a key role in coordinating space-related UN activities for more than a decade. He also supports the Darks Skies Initiative with great commitment to enable astronomical research in the future despite the many satellites in Earth’s orbit.

Header photo:  Dr. Lothar Kurtze
“Polarsternpreis – der Österreichische Weltraumpreis” and “Polar Star Award – the Austrian Space Award” are registered trademarks.

NOMINATION & PROCEDURES

Candidates can nominate themselves or be nominated by others. The jury can also directly select a suitable person. The prize consists of a trophy, prize money of € 800.00 and the public announcement of the winner. “The Polar Star is a symbol of groundbreaking ideas – just as the winners stand for leadership in ideas, initiative and self-motivation,” says the initiator of the Polar Star Award, Olivia Haider, OeWF board member.

The prize can only be awarded to physical persons; the award is not tied to nationality, profession, gender or language.

The application deadline ends on March 15th each year (date of postmark, receipt by OeWF). The prize will be announced and awarded at an event to be determined by the OeWF board.

Interested?
If you or someone you know would like to apply for the Polar Star Award, please write us an email to by telling us about the projects, initiatives or outstanding people in the Austrian space sector.

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