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2012 NASA planetary Science Summer School, Planetary Science NewsLetter

"NASA is accepting applications from science and engineering post-docs, recent PhDs, and doctoral students for its 24th Annual Planetary Science Summer School, which will hold two separate sessions this summer (18-22 June and 16-20 July) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. During the program and pre-session webinars, student teams will carry out the equivalent of an early mission concept study, prepare a proposal authorization review presentation, present it to a review board, and receive feedback."

The 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition Kicks Off Saturday in Cleveland

"The FIRST Robotics Competition kickoff marks the beginning of the season for high school students to design and build a robot to compete in a tournament against a field of competitors. NASA, the largest sponsor of the FIRST Robotics Competition, will broadcast the kickoff for over 100 local students at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, at Cuyahoga Community College, Unified Technologies Center. The event will air nationwide on NASA Television from Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester."

The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) offers scientists and engineers unique opportunities to conduct research at NASA Centers. Each NPP fellowship opportunity is designed to advance NASA research in a specific project related to space science, earth science, aeronautics, space operations, exploration systems, lunar science, or astrobiology.

Applicants must have a Ph.D. or equivalent degree in hand before beginning the fellowship, but may apply while completing the degree requirements. U. S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, and foreign nationals eligible for J-1 status as a Research Scholar may apply. An H-1B Visa status is not acceptable because the NPP is not an employment program.

ISS National Lab Education Project Workshop

"The objective of ISS NLEP is to strengthen a link between the unique venue of the space station and science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, education. The objective of the workshop is to bring together researchers, academicians and interested parties for discussions on upcoming opportunities."

NASA Hosts Second Annual Education Stakeholders' Summit

"NASA's Office of Education will host the second Education Stakeholders' Summit Nov. 29-Dec. 2 in Chantilly, Va. The summit's theme is "An Innovative Solution for the STEM Workforce of Tomorrow." A major conference focus will be the One Stop Shopping Initiative (OSSI). The program's goal is to build a robust NASA infrastructure for attracting students and facilitating their entry into the NASA workforce through a variety of internships, fellowships and scholarships."

NASA'S Diverse Collaborations Spread The Stem Education Message

"NASA's Office of Education is collaborating with a variety of organizations this week to engage students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and increase academic excellence. Leland Melvin, the agency's associate administrator for education, is the keynote speaker today at the inaugural STEM Summit in St. Louis. The summit is sponsored in part by LEGO Education. NASA and the maker of the iconic building bricks have partnered on a number of events in recent years to encourage hands-on creativity as an avenue for learning STEM principles."

Mission X: train like an astronaut in 2012

"ESA astronaut Andre Kuipers is inviting thousands of schoolchildren to perform physical activities and to learn about healthy nutrition to compete with teams from around the world to become as fit as astronauts. Mission X kicks off again in February! ESA is teaming up with NASA as well as other space agencies and using space explorers as models to promote regular exercise and healthy nutrition among young people worldwide."

ESA Cubs delivered for first Vega flight

"The first CubeSats to be sponsored by ESA's Education Office have been delivered to the agency's Space Technology and Research Centre (ESTEC) in the Netherlands. The ESA CubeSat programme began on 28 May 2007, when Antonio Fabrizi, the Director of Launchers, and Rene Oosterlinck, the Director of Legal Affairs and External Relations, signed an agreement to include an educational payload on the maiden flight of the Vega launch vehicle. The announcement of opportunity issued by ESA's Education Office in February 2008 offered the possibility of launching up to nine university CubeSats free-of-charge on Europe's newest launcher."

President Obama Honors Outstanding Science, Math and Engineering Mentors

"Administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring is awarded by the White House to individuals and organizations in recognition of the crucial role that mentoring plays in the academic and personal development of students studying science and engineering--particularly those who belong to groups that are underrepresented in these fields. By offering their expertise and encouragement, mentors help prepare the next generation of scientists and engineers while ensuring that tomorrow's innovators reflect and benefit from the diverse talent of the United States."

NASA Space Technology Research Fellowships - Fall 2012 Fellowship Grant

"This call for graduate fellowship applications solicits applications from accredited U.S. Universities on behalf of highly qualified individuals pursuing or planning to pursue Master's (e.g., M.S.) or Doctoral (e.g., Ph.D.) degrees in relevant space technology disciplines at their respective institutions. This call is open to students pursuing advanced degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). The goal of NSTRF is to provide the Nation with a pipeline of highly skilled engineers and technologists to improve America's technological competitiveness. NASA Space Technology Fellows will perform innovative space technology research while building the skills necessary to become future technological leaders."

NASA Seeks Hosts for Space Station Interactive Education Events

"NASA is seeking proposals from educators who are looking for a unique way to inspire the next generation of explorers. Formal and informal education organizations can apply to host live interactive education downlinks with astronauts onboard the International Space Station. During Expeditions 31 and 32, NASA crew members Don Pettit, Joseph Acaba and Sunita Williams will participate in the 20-minute downlink opportunities. Participants on Earth see and hear the crew members live from space, while the crew hears the questions but does not see the audience."

Yuri's Night Announces Partnership With National Space Society

"Yuri's Night, the World Space Party, today announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Space Society (NSS) that provides for cooperation and joint activities between the two organizations. The MOU calls for the NSS and Yuri's Night to promote each other's organization to its respective members. The NSS will help promote Yuri's Night to its membership and Yuri's Night in turn will promote the NSS to participants in the World Space Party. In addition, Yuri's Night event organizers are encouraged to work with local NSS representatives and members in the planning of their events."

Virtual Institutes to Support the Scientific Collaborations of the Future

"The National Science Foundation (NSF) today announced Science Across Virtual Institutes (SAVI), an effort to motivate collaboration among scientists and educators around the globe to spur scientific discovery. By connecting researchers with common interests and goals, SAVI can better leverage taxpayer resources while helping to address some of society's most vexing problems. Building on beneficial partnerships initiated by NSF-supported researchers, research institutes and universities, SAVI projects will address common challenges and serve as creative hubs for innovative research and education activities across borders."

Fifth Annual Conrad Foundation Spirit of Innovation Challenge

"Today, Nancy Conrad, founder and chairman of the Conrad Foundation, officially launched the 2011-2012 Spirit of Innovation Challenge to encourage students to create technologies and products that solve global issues. For the past four years, the Innovation competition has helped transform the way science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) is being embraced by high school students."

Lockheed Martin renews support for the Spirit of Innovation Challenge

"Lockheed Martin believes the competitive success of our nation depends on an innovative and technically adept workforce that understands the value of collaborating to solve 21st century challenges," said Dr. Ray O. Johnson, Lockheed Martin senior vice president and chief technology officer"

Intern with the NASA Open Government Initiative, Open.NASA.gov

"Are you a college student looking to make a difference in your world...and beyond? Do you love the idea of using technology make government more collaborative, participatory, and transparent? Does your childhood dream of someday working for NASA still live on? If you've answered yes to the above questions, and you'll be spending your 2012 spring semester in either Washington, DC, or Houston, TX, then read on! The NASA Open Government Initiative is looking for innovative minds to join our team for one-semester internships at NASA Headquarters and NASA Johnson Space Center."

In the 21st Century, How Do You Show What You Know?, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

"... the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, HASTAC and Mozilla today announced a $2 million Digital Media and Learning Competition for leading organizations, learning and assessment specialists, designers and technologists to create and test badges and badge systems. The competition will explore ways digital badges can be used to help people learn; demonstrate their skills and knowledge; unlock job, educational and civic opportunities; and open new pipelines to talent. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and high-level business, technology, civic engagement, philanthropic and other leaders participated in the announcement at the Hirshhorn Museum this morning."

NASA Seeks Undergraduates To Fly Research In Microgravity

"NASA is offering undergraduate students the opportunity to test an experiment in microgravity as part of the agency's Reduced Gravity Education Flight Program. The program is accepting proposals for two different flight experiences in 2012. Teams interested in conducting student-driven research should submit a letter of intent by Sept. 14. This step is optional, but serves as an introductory notice that a team plans to submit a proposal for the competition. Proposals for student-driven experiments are due Oct. 26, and selected teams will be announced Dec. 7. The actual flight experience will take place in June 2012."

The pool of candidates for the NAI/APS 2011 competition was the largest we have ever experienced. Typically six to seven selections are made annually, however for 2011 twelve young investigators were selected for the Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research in Astrobiology.

Congratulations go to:

NASA is giving the public the power to journey through the solar system using a new interactive Web-based tool. The "Eyes on the Solar System" interface combines video game technology and NASA data to create an environment for users to ride along with agency spacecraft and explore the cosmos. Screen graphics and information such as planet locations and spacecraft maneuvers use actual space mission data. Point of view can be switched from faraway to close-up to right "on board" spacecraft. Location, motion and appearance are based on predicted and reconstructed mission data. Dozens of controls on a series of pop-up menus allow users to fully customize what they see, and video and audio tutorials explain how to use the tool's many options. Users may choose from 2-D or 3-D modes, with the latter simply requiring a pair of red-cyan glasses to see. "Eyes on the Solar System" and an introduction video are available at: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/eyes

Singularity University co-founder Peter Diamandis, faculty and staff introduce the aims and mission of the university. The video features students from the current graduate student program 2011.

Tor/Forge Books and NASA Jointly Announce Publishing Collaboration

In an effort to educate and encourage math and science education Tor/Forge Books, an imprint of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, and NASA have embarked on a collaboration to publish a series of science based, commercial fiction books, referred to as "NASA inspired Works of Fiction" around concepts pertinent to the current and future work of NASA. NASA will allow existing and new Tor/Forge authors to team up with NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's (GSFC) Subject Matter Experts (SME) to create scientifically accurate and entertaining novels in a distinctly unique way.

Tor/Forge and NASA hope that pairing scientists and engineers with the imprints' award-winning roster of writers will raise awareness and inspire the study of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), in line with the President's Technology Agenda. They also hope to contribute towards the goal of attracting and retaining students in the above fields, thereby strengthening NASA and the nation's future workforce in a compelling manner. More

What could possibly make an already super cool robotics competition even better? The zero-gravity environment of space! NASA and DARPA, in cooperation with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, TopCoder, and Aurora Flight Sciences, recently announced the Zero Robotics competition, an event open to all high schools in the United States that form a team and complete the application process. The Zero Robotics competition is a student software competition that takes the idea of a robotics competition to new heights--literally. The robots are basketball-sized satellites called SPHERES, and they look like something straight out of Star Wars. The competition is kicked off by a challenging problem conjured up by DARPA and NASA. After multiple rounds of simulation and ground competition, a final tournament will be held onboard the International Space Station! The 27 finalists will have their robotic programs run by an astronaut in the microgravity environment of space. More at OSTP

NASA is challenging university students to solve space exploration challenges. The RASC-AL (Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts Academic Linkage) contest, sponsored by NASA and the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA), seeks engineering ideas that could potentially provide solutions to issues faced by current NASA projects. "RASC-AL is born out of the desire to get new, creative, innovative ideas outside the traditional box," said Pat Troutman, Strategic Analysis Manager at NASA's Langley Research Center. "If you never innovate, you never progress."

An innovative summer internship program will give 42 U.S. middle and high school teachers a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience with NASA's latest aerospace engineering technologies while working closely with agency technical mentors.

Environmental Tectonics Corporation announces the formation of the NASTAR Foundation, a non-profit organization that fosters opportunities for people of all ages to experience the excitement of aerospace exploration.

Core focus areas of the NASTAR Foundation are to:

* Inspire, facilitate, and grow public awareness and participation in aviation and space activities
* Enhance workforce development through life-long learning opportunities
* Support innovative programs that improve science, technology, engineering mathematics (STEM) education
* Facilitate theoretical and applied research to meet the needs of the aerospace industry
* Advance health & safety through the creation of medical and training standards for the commercial space industry

NASA announced partnerships with nine organizations that will help the agency implement its 2011 Summer of Innovation (SoI) education program. SoI uses NASA's out-of-this-world missions and technology programs to boost summer learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, particularly for underrepresented and underperforming students. The SoI 2011 partners are:

Challenger Center for Space Science Education (Challenger Center), the nation's premier provider of science education inspiration, is marking its 25th anniversary with the launch of its "Challenger Changed My Life" program to highlight its life-transforming benefits for students. The non-profit organization was founded on April 24, 1986 in tribute to the seven fallen astronauts of the Challenger Space Shuttle and their education mission. With the ongoing support of the astronauts' families, NASA, leading scientists, business leaders, educators and the nation, Challenger Center continues its vital role in STEM (science technology, engineering, and mathematics) education. Since its creation, its nationwide network of Challenger Learning Centers has served more than 4,000,000 students with simulated space missions and powerful STEM-focused learning experiences.

NASA senior officials led a high-voltage education forum Tuesday in New York City to mentor and encourage young people, especially girls, to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) studies and careers. New York middle school and high school students from the Women's Academy of Excellence; the Promise Academy; the New York City Housing Authority; and the General D. Chappie James Middle School of Science attended the event at the Stephen Weiss Studio in Greenwich Village.

Robonaut-1 Balloon Mission Live Video and Mission Updates

"If all goes according to plan a balloon with a student-oriented payload will photograph Space Shuttle Discovery as it climbs into space from an altitude of 100,000 feet. There will also be live streaming video from the balloon itself during the mission - sent back by two regular smartphones running Google's Android operating system. Co-sponsored by the Challenger Center for Space Science Education, this mission is one in a series of flights conducted by Quest for Stars, a California-based non-profit educational organization that uses off-the-shelf hardware and a little ingenuity to allow students to place experiments at the edge of space at exceptionally low cost. Quest for Stars and the Challenger Center for Space Science Education have now joined together to promote the use of these low cost delivery systems. This mission will be the first of what is hoped to be many future collaborations." More information

Educators from around the world will converge in San Antonio, Texas, Feb. 25-27, 2011 at the 23rd Annual T3(TM) International Conference to explore the latest innovations in mathematics and science education and technology used in teaching. The T3 - Teachers Teaching with Technology(TM) - International Conference hosted by Texas Instruments (TI), includes more than 500 sessions that cover mathematics, science and teaching methods using technology. Sessions also cover other subject areas educators say are critical to their success. More than 1,600 educators are expected to attend the conference, which is being held at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center.

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station this spring will conduct six experiments designed by middle school students from across the country. The winning proposals of the "Kids in Micro-g" Challenge are from California, Idaho, Montana, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington state. In its second year, the program offers students in fifth through eighth grades an opportunity to design experiments or simple demonstrations for testing both in the classroom and in the station's microgravity environment.

II. DESCRIPTION OF OPPORTUNITY

A. National and Agency-Wide Priorities

President Obama announced NASA's Strategic Plan that NASA leads scientific and technological advances in aeronautics and space for a Nation on the frontier of discovery. He makes clear that this vision must guide our mission to drive advances in science, technology, and exploration to enhance knowledge, education, innovation, economic vitality, and stewardship of the Earth.

"Some 4 million students have been through the program since 1986, and in recent years the annual average has been about 400,000. Scott Parazynski, a NASA astronaut and medical doctor who took over in November as chairman of the center's board of directors, wants to increase that number to 4 million per year by 2015. ...

Parazynski: "One of the things we're aspiring to do is reduce the barriers to entry. So to help communities that might otherwise not have access to a learning center, we will develop virtual missions led by Challenger Center flight directors remotely, using a school's computer laboratory as an example. Alternatively, we also hope to bring in portable learning centers that we would truck in from a distant location." More at Space News

NOTE: This email is for information gathering purposes. Willingness to participate in the SOI review does not guarantee a proposal will be assigned. The number of available qualified reviewers may exceed the number of reviewers needed.

NASA Research and Education Support Services (NRESS) is seeking persons to evaluate proposals submitted in response to the NASA Cooperative Agreement Notice (CAN) titled, "2011 Summer of Innovation Project" announced by NASA Glenn Research Center Office of Educational Programs on January 19, 2011. Specifically, NASA is interested in reviewers with expertise and experience in one or more of the following areas: education reform and policy, evidence-based summer learning programs, innovative and scalable program design, partnerships, grant management and/or federal education proposal review. NASA is seeking reviewers with various backgrounds and professional affiliation including Pre-K - 12 teachers and principals, college and university educators, researchers and evaluators, social entrepreneurs, strategy consultants, grant makers and managers, and others with education expertise.

No Boundaries, a USA TODAY education initiative in collaboration with NASA, encourages students to explore careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Students explore STEM careers through stimulating project-based learning and team competition. No Boundaries targets students in grades 7-12 and is designed as a team-centered cooperative learning project. No Boundaries is cross-curricular and requires minimal teacher preparation. It aligns to national standards and includes assessment rubrics. Students who submit their final No Boundaries career presentation projects to the 2011 National No Boundaries Competition are eligible to win up to $2,000 in cash awards for themselves and $500 for their teacher or sponsor. They will receive VIP passes to visit a NASA facility. Winners may be asked to present their work to NASA. For more information, visit the competition website. Link to the NES Virtual Campus home page.

AO Number (Required in subject line of email application): 823. Desired Number of Participants: 1 Background Information: The Deep Space Network (DSN) is composed of three spacecraft tracking centers in California, Spain and Australia. Each center tracks spacecraft up to the far reaches of space 24 hours/7-days/week and is manned by human operations. Some of the protocols and operations concepts are shared by other space agencies. The Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) promotes the use of shared approaches and protocols to enable spacecraft operations support across agencies from multiple countries.

AO Number (Required in subject line of email application): 799. Desired Number of Participants: 1 Background Information: The Deep Space Network tracks over forty spacecraft from three geographically separate sites in Goldstone California, Canberra, Australia and Madrid, Spain.

NASA has opened online voting for the agency's OPTIMUS PRIME Spinoff Award student video contest. The public is invited to vote for its favorite videos, made by students in grades three through eight, developed to help educate America's youth about the benefits of NASA's technologies.

NASA is using the correlation between Hasbro's TRANSFORMERS property and commercialized agency "spinoffs" to help students understand how technology developed for space and aeronautics "transforms" into what is used on Earth.

"The Virtual Observatory (VO) is an international attempt to collect astronomical data (images, simulation, mission-logs, etc), organize it and develop tools that let astronomers access this huge amount of information. The VO not only simplifies the work of professional astronomers, it is also a valuable tool for education and public outreach. For teachers and astronomers who actively promote astronomy to the public the VO is an great opportunity to access real astronomical data, use them and have a taste of the workaday life of astronomers." Full paper. More information.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory Summer High School Internship Program (JPL SpaceSHIP) is an 8-week internship designed for high school students, age 16 or older, who have demonstrated a strong interest in and aptitude for science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics (STEM). One of JPL SpaceSHIP's objectives is to encourage pre-college students who have been traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields to consider such fields for their careers.

On Jan. 11, 2011, Google launched the inaugural Google Science Fair. Google has partnered with CERN, National Geographic, Scientific American and the LEGO Group to create this new STEM competition. This is a global competition open to any student aged 13-18, and students may enter as individuals or as teams of up to three. There is no entry fee. Registrations and submissions will be made online. The Science Fair will culminate in a celebratory event at Google headquarters in California in July 2011, where finalists will compete for internships, scholarships and prizes in front of a panel of celebrity scientist judges, including Nobel Laureates and household names. Submissions are due by April 4, 2011. To sign up for free resource kits for your classroom or school, please visit the Global Science fair website at http://www.google.com/sciencefair.

NASA is inviting student teams to design and build experiments the agency will fly into the stratosphere, a near-space environment, more than 100,000 feet above the Earth. NASA's second annual Balloonsat High-Altitude Flight competition is open to student teams in ninth to 12th grades from the United States and its territories. Each team of four or more students must submit an experiment proposal to NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland by Feb. 11. Student teams may propose experiments on a wide range of topics, from bacteria studies to weather observations.

Applications are now being accepted for the Achieving Competence in Computing, Engineering and Space Science project, also known as ACCESS. This 10-week, paid internship at NASA centers around the U.S. is designed for undergraduate and graduate students with disabilities. Applicants should have strong backgrounds in science, a GPA of 3.0 or higher, and a desire to pursue technical careers. Students who are chosen will work with scientists and engineers in an area compatible with their skills and interests. Applications for placement at NASA are due Feb. 11, 2011. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/offices/education/programs/descriptions/Achieving_Competence.html. Please e-mail any questions about this opportunity to Laureen Summers at lsummers@aaas.org.

Caltech's Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships, or SURF, project introduces undergraduate students to research under the guidance of seasoned mentors at Caltech or NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Students experience the process of research as a creative intellectual activity and gain a more realistic view of the opportunities and demands of a professional research career. SURF is modeled on the grant-seeking process. Students collaborate with potential mentors to define and develop a project and to write research proposals. Caltech faculty or JPL staff review the proposals and recommend awards. Students work over a 10-week period in the summer, mid-June to late August. At the conclusion of the project, they submit a technical paper and give a SURF Seminar Day oral presentation. All application materials must be received no later than Feb. 22, 2011. For more information, visit http://www.surf.caltech.edu/. Please e-mail any questions about this opportunity to the Caltech Student-Faculty Programs office at sfp@caltech.edu.

NASA has selected 101 of its high-performing interns and fellows for the agency's Student Ambassador Program. The students will represent NASA at a variety of education and outreach events at schools and universities to help inspire future students interested in science, engineering, mathematics and technology, or STEM, opportunities.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Headquarters has released a solicitation, entitled NASA Space Technology Research Fellowships (NSTRF) - Fall 2011 Fellowship Start, on December 29, 2010. The solicitation is available by opening the NASA Research Opportunities homepage at http://nspires.nasaprs.com/, selecting "Solicitations," then selecting "Open Solicitations," and, finally, selecting "NSTRF11." Go directly to the NSTRF11 page on NSPIRES here. NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT) seeks to sponsor U.S. citizen and permanent resident graduate student researchers who show significant potential to contribute to NASA's strategic goals and missions.

The NASA Academies offer a ten-week summer experience for college students with emphasis on immersive and integrated multi-disciplinary exposure and training. Activities include laboratory research, a group project, lectures, meetings with experts and administrators, visits to NASA centers and space-related industries, and technical presentations. Students learn how NASA and its centers operate, gain experience in world-class laboratories, and participate in leadership development and team-building activities.

FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an organization founded by inventor Dean Kamen to inspire young people's interest and participation in science and technology, today announced NASA has awarded a five-year agreement to FIRST to provide support for hand-on robotics competition events to address the critical shortage in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields that the nation is facing. The multi-year cooperative agreement, worth up to $20 million, was granted by NASA through the year 2014.

NASA is preparing to fly a small satellite about the size of a loaf of bread that could help answer astrobiologys fundamental questions about the origin, evolution, and distribution of life in the universe. The nanosatellite, known as Organism/Organic Exposure to Orbital Stresses, or O/OREOS, is a secondary payload aboard a U.S. Air Force four-stage Minotaur IV rocket planned for launch on Nov. 19, 2010.

NASA's "Kids in Micro-g" challenge is accepting proposals from students in fifth through eighth grades to design a classroom experiment that also can be performed by astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Proposals are due by Dec. 8.

The experiments should examine the effect of weightlessness on various subjects: liquids, solids, the law of physics and humans. The experiments are expected to have observably different results in microgravity than in the classroom. The apparatus for the experiments must be constructed using materials from a special tool kit aboard the station. The kit contains items commonly found in classrooms for science experiments. The experiments must take 30 minutes or less to set up, run and take down.

Community college students in a pilot program will take the first steps toward potential technology careers as they develop robotic explorers at NASA field centers. Ninety students from community colleges in 23 states have been selected to travel to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston or the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., for hands on experience with technology development and direct interaction with NASA experts.

This week, the White House Summit on Community Colleges explored how these institutions can support a highly educated and skilled workforce. Concurrently, NASA is preparing for the culmination of the National Community College Aerospace Scholars pilot program. The agency will bring young scholars to join agency professionals Oct. 20-22 to develop rovers to explore the surfaces of other worlds and learn more about actual careers in science and engineering.

Teams to Design Software for Small Satellites on the International Space Station

WASHINGTON -- NASA is challenging high school teams to design software to program small satellites aboard the International Space Station. The competition centers on the Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites, or SPHERES.

SPHERES are bowling ball-sized spherical satellites used to test maneuvers for spacecraft performing autonomous rendezvous and docking. Three of these satellites fly inside the station's cabin. Each is self-contained with power, propulsion, computing and navigation equipment.

The Zero-Robotics investigation, run by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Mass., is designed to inspire future scientists and engineers. The teams are asked to address challenges of satellite docking, assembly and flight formation. The 2010 Zero-Robotics Challenge expands on a limited pilot program performed in fall 2009. This expanded pilot, called HelioSPHERES, will involve high schools from across the country during the 2010 - 2011 academic year. This new education program builds critical engineering skills for students, such as problem solving, design thought process, operations training, teamwork and presentation skills.

NASA is seeking proposals to establish two new SEMAA sites. Established in 1993, the Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy is an innovative, pre-college project designed to increase participation and retention of historically underrepresented youth (grades K-12) in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM. The project currently serves over 50,000 students, parents and teachers annually at 15 locations nationwide. You can learn more about SEMAA by going to the website at www.nasa.gov/education/semaa.

This year's proposals are due to the National SEMAA Office by 4 p.m. EDT on Sept. 3, 2010.

Conrad Foundation & ManSat Limited Expand the Spirit and Innovation Awards program on International Stage

"Officials with The Conrad Foundation today announced ManSat Limited, a global commercial space corporation headquartered on the Isle of Man , has joined with the Conrad Foundation to expand the 2010-2011 Spirit of Innovation Awards program on the international stage. ManSat will sponsor a national competition on the Isle of Man from which one finalist team will participate in the annual awards competition, which gives high school students the opportunity to design, develop and commercialize innovative products that help solve challenges of the 21st century."

Dreaming of space, grounded in town, Times of India

"Six talented students from the Somalwar Nikalas and Ramdaspeth branches and three college students from city who have brought laurels to city by making it to the prestigious 'space settlement design contest' organised annually by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) unfortunately would not be able to visit Chicago, USA, for making presentations in the absence of sponsors. The contest is from May 25 to 31. The students and their parents have not given hope and are looking for corporate as well as state support. It is for the second consecutive year that Somalwar students have been selected for the contest organised by NASA's Ames Space Research Centre and National Space Society."

Keith's note: While we're all fighting with one another about space policy, NASA continues to remain an astonishingly powerful motivator around the world. What is it that they understand about what NASA does that we ignore - or have forgotten?

Join the Lunar and Planetary Institute on April 21, 2010, for a live video webcast with Delia Santiago. She will discuss an exciting new citizen scientist program called MoonZoo. The rest of the conversation is up to you!

Santiago is the digital science strategist for the NASA Lunar Science Institute based at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif. She works with interactive media and science collaboration tools to engage both the public and researchers inside and outside of NASA. Prior to joining the NLSI, Santiago worked at NASA's Ames Research Center with both the NASA CoLab program and the Life Science Payloads.

The MyMoon webcast begins at 8 p.m. EDT. Connect to the webcast at: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/mymoon/?p=p_santiago.cfm.

MyMoon (http://mymoon.lpi.usra.edu) is supported by funding from NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Help 25 of the top high school innovators design the future! On March 29th, the Spirit of Innovation Awards challenges YOU to vote for your favorite teams and help select this year's "Pete Conrad Scholars!"

Over the past 6 months, 25 finalist teams have created real products to solve some of the grand challenges facing society. From the depths of the oceans to the edges of space, these students will knock your socks off! Piezo-electric wallpaper, robotic astronaut assistants, advanced water purification systems, and Navajo Solar "Frybread" ovens; these are just a few of the amazing products high school students are designing.

To see all of the teams check out www.conradawards.org, and remember, online voting is open March 29th through April 9th. Winners will be announced April 10th during the 2010 Innovation Summit at NASA Ames Research Center.

"NASA/HQ has a requirement for Support Services for the ZERO Robotics competition. The ZERO Robotics competition enables high-school students to participate in the SPHERES (Synchronized Position Hold Engage Re-orient Experimental Satellite) program by writing their own algorithms to solve a problem provided by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) team. The pilot program involves two high schools that will compete against each other during a test session that will be conducted aboard the ISS during the winter of 2009-2010. The contractor will support the pilot program to completion and evaluate its results, setting clear and realistic objectives for a potential national program to start in the Fall of 2010 or 2011. The Government intends to purchase the services from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). MIT is uniquely qualified to perform this pilot program and provide support engineering because they created the SPHERES program and hold proprietary ownership of the data." More

Moon Work Design Contest Offers NASA Internships to Winners

"The 2010 NASA Moon Work engineering design challenge seeks to motivate college students by giving them first-hand experience with the process of developing new technologies. To participate in the contest, students will submit their original design for tools or instruments that can help astronauts live and work on the moon. Top-ranked students will be offered a chance to intern with a team from NASA's Exploration Technology Development Program."

Blue Origin has selected three unmanned research payloads to fly on the New Shepard suborbital vehicle as a part of Phase 1 of the New Shepard Research Flight Demonstration Program. These payloads were selected from an excellent field of submitted proposals.

The three investigations selected are:

* Three-Dimensional Critical Wetting Experiment in Microgravity. The principal investigator of this effort is Dr. Stephen Collicott, of Purdue University.

* Microgravity Experiment on Dust Environments in Astrophysics (MEDEA). The principal investigator of this effort is Dr. Joshua Colwell, of the University of Central Florida.

* Effective lnterfacial Tension lnduced Convection (EITIC). The principal investigator of this effort is Dr. John Pojman, of Louisiana State University.

These flights are planned to begin in the coming years to demonstrate the integration and operation of scientific experiments into the New Shepard system.

More information on Blue Origin, the New Shepard program, and its research and education applications can be found at www.blueorigin.com. Further inquiries should be directed to Dr. Alan Stern, Blue Origin's advisor for Research and Education Mission applications: astern@blueorigin.com.

Further information at http://www.blueorigin.com/nsresearch.html

NASA ESMD: Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) was developed by the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) specifically to create a constellation of new capabilities, supporting technologies and foundational research that enables sustained and affordable human and robotic exploration. This competition is one of many projects designed to contribute to our Nation's efforts in achieving excellence in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. Join NASA's mission to bring us to the moon, Mars and beyond by submitting a research paper on one of the four ESMD topics listed below. Your research may be used as the solution to current NASA challenges.

More information

ESA's Education Office has awarded a contract to Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd of the UK to manage the development and testing of the first European student mission to the Moon. Launch is expected in 2013-2014.

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) has been selected as the prime contractor for the European Student Moon Orbiter (ESMO) project. The final signature of the contract took place on 4 November 2009. The mission involves delivering a spacecraft to lunar orbit, followed by 6 months of operations that include mapping of the lunar surface and studying our nearest neighbour.

NASA is accepting applications from students at U.S. colleges and universities who want to send their experiments to the edge of space on a high-flying scientific balloon.

The annual NASA project provides near space access for 12 undergraduate and graduate student experiments to be carried by a NASA high-altitude research balloon. The flights typically last 15 to 20 hours and reach an altitude of 23 miles. Experiments may include compact satellites or prototypes.

The experiments are flown aboard the High Altitude Student Platform, or HASP, a balloon-born instrument stack launched from the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility's remote site in Fort Sumner, N.M. The goals of the project are to provide a space test platform to encourage student research and stimulate the development of student satellite payloads and other space-engineering products.

"Welcome to AcademyApp.com. Here students can apply to the NASA Academy at Ames, Glenn, Goddard, and Marshall with a single application. An applicant for Research Associate with the NASA Academy must:

* have a demonstrated interest in space
* have a previous internship or project experience
* be a junior, senior, or first or second year graduate student in Fall 2010
* be in high academic standing (GPA of 3.0 or greater)
* be a US citizen (Note: The NASA Academy at Ames will also consider applicants from Canada.)"

Dennis Wingo from the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project (LOIRP), hosted at NASA Ames Research Center in the NASA Research Park, will be teaching a class at HackerDojo in 4 November 2009.

HackerDojo is located at 140 South Whisman Road in Mountain View, CA (Map) from 6 to 7:30 pm.

We hope to stream this presentation live.

NASA is inviting fifth through eighth grade students to participate in a waste limitation management and recycling design challenge. Participants in the competition will design and test water recycling systems that could be used for future exploration of the moon. The top three teams will receive awards, and the first place team will receive an expense-paid trip to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Teams of up to six students and one teacher or mentor should submit their proposals and results to NASA for evaluation by Feb. 1, 2010. Schools in the United States and its territories, science museums, science centers and home school groups may host teams.