The competition
Our annual Schools Geology Challenge is open to students aged 16 to 18, giving them the chance to showcase their passion for geoscience as well as demonstrating their teamwork, creativity and presentation skills. The competition is accessible not only to geology students but those studying geography or science subjects too.
The first stage is the qualifiers, where teams produce a piece of media for an online audience on any geoscience topic of their choice. The top 10 teams are then invited to the grand final at Burlington House to complete a problem-solving activity as a team and the chance to present their findings to a panel of judges working in geoscience fields.
The 2025 final
The grand final of the 2025 Schools Geology Challenge took place at Burlington House, London on 18 March. In this year’s final challenge, teams were tasked with preparing a mission proposal for launching a spacecraft to acquire strategically valuable materials from asteroids, helping to meet the demand for green technology.
They were introduced to the GEOLSOC Space Agency (GSLSA) who they needed to impress with their mission proposal as they would only be funding one mission. Teams needed to consider which elements they wanted to mine, which mining equipment would be best, whether to invest in instrumentation to learn more about the composition of their chosen asteroid and how much material they expected to obtain. They also had the option to commission a laboratory study on a newly discovered element Burlingtonium (Bh) or invest in public engagement initiatives – all while keeping their mission to the assigned budget!
Students then presented their mission plan to a panel of judges. This year’s final was judged by Marissa Lo, Leanne Hughes, and Mahesh Anand who had expertise in lunar volcanology, geological surveying, and planetary science.
And the winners are...
The well deserved winners of the 2025 challenge were Eltham College! The team impressed the judges with their mission proposal, showing their great teamwork and geoscience knowledge. The team took home the coveted amethyst trophy and £500 towards geoscience education at their school.
Runners up this year were Sheffield High School for Girls and Cirencester College, who won £250 each for their school.
Thank you again to all who took part and to our wonderful judges!
If you would like to find out more about the competition or are interested in entering next year, please visit our Schools Geology Challenge webpage.