diff --git a/src/components/navigation/www/navigation.jsx b/src/components/navigation/www/navigation.jsx
index 14a6d412b..245a5797c 100644
--- a/src/components/navigation/www/navigation.jsx
+++ b/src/components/navigation/www/navigation.jsx
@@ -84,6 +84,8 @@ class Navigation extends React.Component {
     }
 
     handleSearchSubmit (formData) {
+        if (formData.q.trim() === '') return; // don't submit empty searches
+        
         let targetUrl = '/search/projects';
         if (formData.q) {
             targetUrl += `?q=${encodeURIComponent(formData.q)}`;