We’re pleased to announce the winners of the Commenting Prize for [The Sagan Space Tournament](https://www.metaculus.com/tournament/sagan-tournament/):

* [Zaldath](https://www.metaculus.com/accounts/profile/139161/) – $1,000
* [Jgalt](https://www.metaculus.com/accounts/profile/101465/) – $700
* [NoUsernameSelected](https://www.metaculus.com/accounts/profile/111772/) – $400
* [pelegsh](https://www.metaculus.com/accounts/profile/121426/) – $200
* [MayMeta](https://www.metaculus.com/accounts/profile/133859/) – $200

Informative comments and forecast rationales are a valuable public good. In addition to providing useful insights into the factors driving predictions, they can also spark discussions and provide other forecasters with a launchpad for their own thinking and research. 

Congratulations to the winners of the Commenting Prize, whose exceptional contributions help make the Sagan Space Tournament a resource for clarifying spaceflight and exploration timelines!

We also want to extend a special thank you to astrophysicist [Emma Louden](https://www.emmalouden.com/about) for sharing her expertise as one of the Commenting Prize judges.

The winning commentary included:

* [Zaldath’s analysis of nuclear powered space propulsion](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13914/nuclear-power-usage-in-space/#comment-119096), surveying the state of nuclear propulsion projects and regulations.
* [Jgalt’s discussion](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13903/sample-return-missions-by-destination/#comment-110246) of the likelihood of a sample return mission to the outer planets, noting the significant design, planning, and travel time requirements and referring to existing plans and other missions as examples.
* [NoUsernameSelected’s comment](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13739/percent-of-launched-rockets-that-are-reused/#comment-109184) sharing some helpful statistics about the share of Falcon 9 launches that had been reused in 2020 and 2021.
* [pelegsh’s comment](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13912/no-of-toilets-in-space-by-2030/#comment-115649) discussing the likelihood of planned space stations and modules in the context of predicting the number of toilets in space in 2030.

Zaldath has also earned extra kudos for making a number of excellent comments and reaching the prize cap. Great work, Zaldath!

There is still plenty of time to forecast in The Sagan Space Tournament. The most accurate forecasters will win a share of the $2,500 accuracy prize. [Start predicting](https://www.metaculus.com/tournament/sagan-tournament/)!

**Congratulations again to our commenting prize winners, Zaldath, Jgalt, NoUsernameSelected, pelegsh, and MayMeta!**

The winning comments:


| Placement | User               | Question and Link to Comment                                                                                                                           |
| --------- | ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| 1         | Zaldath            | [When will nuclear power be used for propulsion in space in a non-test capacity?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13914/#comment-119096)           |
| 2         | Zaldath            | [What will be the number of satellites launched in each of the following years?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13892/#comment-118955)            |
| 3         | Jgalt              | [When will successful sample return missions occur for the following destinations?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13903/#comment-110246)         |
| 4         | NoUsernameSelected | [What percent of the total rockets launched into space in each year will have been reused?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13739/#comment-109184) |
| 5         | pelegsh            | [What will be the number of toilets in space by 2030?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13912/#comment-115649)                                      |
| 6         | MayMeta            | [What will be the number of toilets in space by 2030?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13912/#comment-118509)                                      |
| 7         | NoUsernameSelected | [What will be the cumulative number of private citizens visiting space for the first time?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13777/#comment-109544) |
| 8         | Jgalt              | [When will the first commercial in-orbit refueling take place?](https://www.metaculus.com/questions/13911/#comment-110256)                             |