Month: September 2016

NASA Education “Science WOW!” Message — Sept. 28, 2016

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Science Always Starts With a Question …

This Week’s Question: What Is the Hubble Space Telescope?

The Hubble Space Telescope helps scientists understand how planets and galaxies form. Check out these articles written for students that give the scoop on Hubble!

K-4: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/stories/nasa-knows/what-is-the-hubble-space-telecope-k4.html
5-8: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/5-8/features/nasa-knows/what-is-the-hubble-space-telecope-58.html

Have You Seen This?

Hubble is more than a science spacecraft; it’s a cultural phenomenon! NASA wants to know where you #SpotHubble!

Take a moment to think about where you’ve seen the Hubble Space Telescope or Hubble images in your daily life. Maybe you own a textbook with a picture of the telescope on the cover, or you walk by a mural inspired by Hubble images every day on your way to work. Perhaps you’ve even created art based on Hubble images. Share your photos with NASA on Instagram, Twitter, Flickr and Facebook. https://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/2016/spothubble

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

Join STEM@NASA Goddard in Celebrating International Observe the Moon Night!
Audience: All Educators and Students
Event Date: Sept. 28, 2016, 1-1:30 p.m. EDT

Are you ready to look at the moon in an entirely new way? Join NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center on Sept. 28, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT for STEM@NASA Goddard: International Observe the Moon Night. During this 30-minute event, Andrea Jones, education specialist for Planetary Science Institute at NASA Goddard, will share how International Observe the Moon Night encourages appreciation and understanding of our moon and its connection to NASA planetary science and exploration.

The program will stream live on NASA Goddard’s Ustream channel, and participants will be able to submit questions by email and Twitter.

For more information, please contact Erin McKinley at erin.e.mckinley@nasa.gov.

**NEW** Live Video Chat With Researcher Studying Plants on the Space Station
Audience: All Educators and Students
Event Date: Sept. 30, 2016, 11-11:45 a.m. EDT

Connect your class with NASA’s Digital Learning Network to talk with Dr. Anna-Lisa Paul, a research professor from the University of Florida studying plants currently on the International Space Station. This unique platform lets Paul study how plants react to stress with no gravity and provides a window into the origins of adaptive processes. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space manages the U.S. National Laboratory and sponsors this experiment.

The 45-minute event will be webcast on the NASA DLiNfo Channel on Sept. 30, 2016, at 11 a.m. EDT.

Ask questions via Twitter using #askDLN or via email to DLiNfochannel@gmail.com.

The DLN currently is accepting requests from middle and high school classes interested in participating interactively during an upcoming CASIS Academy Live Event.

Upcoming CASIS Academy Live Events (Each 45-minute event begins at 11 a.m. ET.):

Friday, Oct. 21 — Freeze Drying in Space, Dr. Jeremy Hinds, Eli Lilly & Co.
Monday, Nov. 28 — Hard-to-Wet Surfaces in Space, Dr. Ken Savin, Eli Lilly & Co.
Friday, Dec. 9 — Ants in Space, Dr. Deborah Gordon, Stanford University

To be considered, please send an email to dlinfochannel@gmail.com at least two weeks prior to the event. Use “CASIS Academy Live (Event Date)” in the message Subject line and include the following information in the email message:

Point of Contact (POC) Name
School Name
POC Email
POC Phone Number
Grade Level of Students Who Will Participate
Approximate Number of Students Who Will Participate

Please direct questions about these events to DLiNfochannel@gmail.com.

For more information about other DLN events, visit https://www.nasa.gov/dln.

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

**NEW** New Classroom Activity From JPL Education: Stomp Rockets
Audience: Educators of Grades 4-9

Bring the excitement of rocketry to your classroom with a new activity from the Education team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The “DIY Space: Stomp Rockets” classroom activity is a hands-on way to get students excited about rocketry, the engineering design process and mathematics.

Visit the website for the standards-aligned lesson plan and extension activities, plus video tutorials to help with lesson prep.

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/stomp-rockets

Solar System Ambassadors Program Accepting Applications
Audience: All Educators
Application Period: Sept. 1-30, 2016

The NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory Solar System Ambassadors Program, a nationwide network of space enthusiast volunteers, will be accepting applications from Sept. 1 through Sept. 30, 2016.

Highly motivated individuals will be given the opportunity to represent NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory as volunteer SSAs to the public for a one-year, renewable term beginning Jan. 1, 2017.

While applications are being sought nationwide, interested parties from the following areas are especially encouraged to apply: Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Nebraska, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. SSA hopes to add 100 new volunteers to the program in 2017.

To learn more about the SSA Program and to apply online, visit https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/ssa/home.cfm. The Announcement of Opportunity and application form will be available on Sept. 1.

If you have questions about this opportunity, contact Kay Ferrari, SSA coordinator, by email at ambassad@jpl.nasa.gov.

**NEW** Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators

The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative at Texas State University is presenting a series of free webinars open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Registration is required to participate. To register, simply click on the link provided beneath the webinar description.

NASA Weathering the Storm — Earth Right Now: Weather vs. Climate
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 4-8
Event Date: Oct. 3, 2016, at 6 p.m. EDT
Explore our understanding and forecasting of weather and how weather and climate differ. NASA missions, STEM resources, curriculum, and integration of the Next Generation Science Standards will guide us through a “storm” of classroom activities. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/203186

NASA Weathering the Storm — Earth Right Now: Wild Weather Adventure With NASA SciJinks
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades K-8
Event Date: Oct. 4, 2016, at 6 p.m. EDT
Explore a selection of images and visualizations of weather, wind, storms and their effects on Earth. SciJinks is a joint NASA/NOAA educational website for school-age children and their educators. The website explores weather and Earth science through articles, videos, images and games. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/203244

For a full schedule of upcoming webinars, visit http://www.txstate-epdc.net/events/.

Please direct questions about this series of webinars to Steve Culivan at stephen.p.culivan@nasa.gov.

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

**NEW** Call for Proposals — NASA Research Announcement for Use of the NASA Physical Sciences Informatics System: Appendix C
Audience: Graduate Students
Informational Webinar: Oct. 5, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT
Proposal Deadline: Dec. 15, 2016

NASA is seeking ground-based research proposals from graduate students and established researchers to use NASA’s Physical Sciences Informatics system to develop new analyses and scientific insights. The PSI system is a resource for researchers to data mine information generated from completed physical sciences experiments performed on the International Space Station or from related ground-based studies.

This solicitation appendix focuses on the following five research areas: combustion science, complex fluids, fluid physics, fundamental physics and materials science.

For graduate students (students working toward an advanced degree), this NASA Research Announcement is soliciting proposals that advance fundamental research in one of the physical sciences disciplines identified above and also assist in the awarding of an advanced degree to the graduate student. This call is open to students who meet the following eligibility requirements:

— The student is pursuing an advanced degree directly related to a physical sciences discipline. Only technical degrees are permitted (not degrees in policy or management).
— The student is a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident alien of the U.S., or on a student visa at an accredited U.S. university at the time of application submission.
— The student is enrolled in a master’s or doctoral degree program at an accredited U.S. university at the time of application submission. Or, if the student is an undergraduate starting graduate studies, he or she has been accepted to a master’s or doctoral degree program at an accredited U.S. university at the time of application submission and will start during the next academic year.
— The student has an academic graduate advisor who will submit the application for the graduate student. The student must perform the proposed research under the guidance of the assigned graduate advisor.

The agency expects to make approximately 10 awards in spring 2016. Research and development efforts will take place over two years. The typical award will be $75,000-$100,000 per year, for up to two years.

The deadline for submitting proposals is Dec. 15, 2016.

For information, visit http://psi.nasa.gov/.

NASA plans to conduct a proposers’ conference on Oct. 5, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT. To participate in this WebEx event, navigate to https://nasa.webex.com/ and enter the meeting information:
Meeting Number: 994 156 009
Meeting Password: $Athena-2016.

To hear the audio for the conference, call 1-844-467-6272 and enter the conference passcode 921301#. If you want to submit questions about the  Physical Sciences Informatics system or the NASA Research Announcement before the conference, please send your questions to msfc-dl-psi-support@mail.nasa.gov. For additional information, see the PSI website.

Please direct questions about this NASA Research Announcement to Dr. Francis Chiaramonte at francis.p.chiaramonte@nasa.gov.

NASA’s Centennial Challenges: Vascular Tissue Challenge
Audience: All Interested U.S. Citizens, Including Higher Education Educators and Students
Deadline: No Later Than Sept. 30, 2019

NASA, in partnership with the nonprofit Methuselah Foundation’s New Organ Alliance, is seeking ways to advance the field of bioengineering through a new prize competition. The Vascular Tissue Challenge offers a $500,000 prize to be divided among the first three teams that successfully create thick, metabolically functional, human vascularized organ tissue in a controlled laboratory environment.

Competitors must produce vascularized tissue that is more than .39 inches (1 centimeter) in thickness and maintains more than 85 percent survival of the required cells throughout a 30-day trial period. To win an award, teams must demonstrate three successful trials with at least a 75 percent success rate. In addition to the laboratory trials, teams must submit a proposal that details how they would further advance some aspect of their research through a microgravity experiment that could be conducted in the U.S. National Laboratory on the International Space Station.

The first registered team(s) to meet the required guidelines and complete their trials by Sept. 30, 2019, will win the awards.

The Vascular Tissue Challenge prize purse is provided by NASA’s Centennial Challenges Program, part of NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. Centennial Challenges, managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, is NASA’s citizen-inventor prize program. It invites the nation to help advance the technologies that will enable us to go to Mars and beyond, as well as improve life on Earth. The New Organ Alliance is administering the competition on behalf of NASA. The alliance is a nonprofit organization focused on regenerative medicine research and development to benefit human disease research and tissue engineering.

For information about the Methuselah Foundation’s New Organ Alliance, official challenge documents, rules and schedule of events, visit https://neworgan.org/vtc-prize.php.

For more information about the Vascular Tissue Challenge, visit https://www.nasa.gov/vtchallenge.

NASA Unveils New Public Web Portal for Research Results
Audience: All Educators and Students

With the launch of a new agency public access portal, public access to NASA-funded research data now is just a click away. PubSpace is a repository of original science journal articles produced by NASA-funded research and available online without a fee.

While the agency always has made access to its research a high priority, the focus now is to make NASA science data more easily obtainable via “one-stop shopping.” This increased public access is intended to accelerate the dissemination of fundamental research results to advance scientific knowledge and help ensure the nation’s future prosperity.

The NASA-Funded Research Results portal was created in response to a 2013 request from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, which directed science-funding agencies to develop plans to increase access to the results of federally funded research. NASA’s public access plan was developed in coordination with the science and technology research community across the agency. NASA will continue to consult with the scientific community, academic institutions, publishers and other federal agencies to implement this plan and increase access to research results.

For more information, visit https://www.nasa.gov/open/researchaccess.

Do you want more NASA science? Visit http://science.nasa.gov/.

Don’t miss out on upcoming NASA education opportunities.
For a full list of events, opportunities and more, visit the Educators and Students Current Opportunity pages on NASA’s website:
— Educators https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/current-opps-index.html
— Students https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/current-opps-index.html

Are you looking for NASA educational materials to support your STEM curriculum?
Search hundreds of resources by subject, grade level, type and keyword at https://www.nasa.gov/education/resources/.

Find NASA science resources for your classroom. NASA Wavelength is a digital collection of Earth and space science resources for educators of all levels — from elementary to college, to out-of-school programs. http://nasawavelength.org/

Visit NASA Education on the web:
NASA Office of Education: https://www.nasa.gov/education
For Educators: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/index.html
For Students: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/index.html
NASA Kids’ Club: https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub

Did you miss last week’s NASA Education Science WOW! message?
Visit the Science WOW! blog for an archive of previous messages.
https://blogs.nasa.gov/educationsciencewow/

NASA Education “Science WOW!” Message — Sept. 21, 2016

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Science Always Starts With a Question …

This Week’s Question: Why Does Earth Have Seasons?

On Sept. 22, the fall equinox marks the official start of autumn. To find out why Earth has seasons, visit http://scijinks.jpl.nasa.gov/earths-seasons/.

Have You Seen This?

Carry visualizations of recent global climate data in your pocket with NASA’s Earth Now: Vital Signs of the Planet application for iPhone and Android.

Earth science satellite data, including surface air temperature, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, and water vapor, is used to create a 3-D model of Earth that can be zoomed and rotated.

To download for iPhone, visit https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/earth-now/id494633346?mt=8. Android users can download the app at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gov.nasa.jpl.earthnow.activity.

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

2016 von Kármán Lecture Series — Attend in Person or View Online
Audience: All Educators; Students in Grades 9-12 and Higher Education
Next Lecture Date: Sept. 22, 2016, at 7 p.m. PDT (10 p.m. EDT)

The Theodore von Kármán Lecture Series, named after the founder of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and presented by JPL’s Office of Communication and Education, shares the excitement of the space program’s missions, instruments and other technologies.

Lectures take place twice per month, on consecutive Thursdays and Fridays. The Thursday lectures take place in JPL’s Theodore von Kármán Auditorium, and Friday lectures take place at Pasadena City College’s Vosloh Forum. Both start at 7 p.m. PDT (10 p.m. EDT). Admission and parking are free for all lectures. No reservations are required, but seating is limited. The Thursday evening lectures are streamed live for viewing online. Archives of past lectures are also available online.

Next Lecture in the Series:

Revealing Saturn: Cassini Science Highlights and the Grand Finale
Event Date: Sept. 22 and Sept. 23, 2016, at 7 p.m. PDT (10 p.m. EDT)
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures_archive.php?year=2016&month=9
The Cassini mission’s findings have revolutionized our understanding of Saturn. With its mission winding down, what new puzzles will Cassini solve before it plunges into Saturn’s atmosphere? Cassini Project Scientist Dr. Linda Spilker will present highlights of Cassini’s ambitious inquiry at Saturn and an overview of science observations in the final orbits. Dr. Earl Maize, Cassini program manager, will discuss Cassini’s exciting challenges and the final year of the mission, ultimately flying through a region where no spacecraft has ever flown before.

Questions about this series should be directed to http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/contact_JPL.php.

Join STEM@NASA Goddard in Celebrating International Observe the Moon Night!
Audience: All Educators and Students
Event Date: Sept. 28, 2016, 1-1:30 p.m. EDT

Are you ready to look at the moon in an entirely new way? Join NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center on Sept. 28, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT for STEM@NASA Goddard: International Observe the Moon Night. During this 30-minute event, Andrea Jones, education specialist for Planetary Science Institute at NASA Goddard, will share how International Observe the Moon Night encourages appreciation and understanding of our moon and its connection to NASA planetary science and exploration.

The program will stream live on NASA Goddard’s Ustream channel, and participants will be able to submit questions by email and Twitter.

For more information, please contact Erin McKinley at erin.e.mckinley@nasa.gov.

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

Educator Workshop — Comets Close Up
Audience: Formal and Informal Educators of Grades 6-12
Event Date: Sept. 24, 2016, 8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. PDT

The Rosetta spacecraft is on a 10-year mission to study the comet “67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko” (C-G) and answer questions about comets. Join lead scientists for the Rosetta mission in an educational workshop that explores hands-on activities and resources for engaging students in the science of comets and small bodies.

In this workshop, Rosetta project scientist Bonnie Buratti and project manager Art Chmielewski will share some of the basic physics of comets and discuss how the Rosetta mission was able to land on one for the first time. Hear about the mission’s latest discoveries, see incredible up-close images of the comet, and get the inside scoop on a second landing on the comet scheduled for Sept. 30, 2016.

The target audience for the workshop is formal and informal educators of grades 6-12, but it is open to all educators.

The event will take place Sept. 24, 2016, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. PDT at the von Kármán Auditorium at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

For more information, directions to the workshop location, and instructions for reserving a spot, visit http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/events/2016/9/24/educator-workshop-comets-close-up.

To learn more about the Rosetta mission, visit http://rosetta.jpl.nasa.gov/.

Please direct questions about this workshop to Andrea Angrum at 818-354-6775.

**NEW** Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators

The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative at Texas State University is presenting a series of free webinars open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Registration is required to participate. To register, simply click on the link provided beneath the webinar description.

Solar System and Beyond: JUNO to Jupiter
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades K-12
Event Date: Sept. 26, 2016, at 6:30 p.m. EDT
Participants will learn about the “Solar System and Beyond” with NASA’s Juno mission to Jupiter. Join us to learn about the JUNO mission, which started in August of 2011, and hands-on activities related to the solar system. This educational activity aligns to NASA Education API 2.4.2. Continue to support STEM educators through the delivery of NASA education content and engagement in educator professional development opportunities. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/196775

For a full schedule of upcoming webinars, visit http://www.txstate-epdc.net/events/.

Please direct questions about this series of webinars to Steve Culivan at stephen.p.culivan@nasa.gov.

**NEW** Free Educator Professional Development Workshops From NASA’s Stennis Space Center Office of Education
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators
Workshop Location: Infinity Science Center in Pearlington, Mississippi

NASA’s Stennis Space Center Office of Education is presenting a series of free science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, educator professional development workshops open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Workshops will be five hours in length and presented at the Infinity Science Center in Pearlington, Mississippi. (Map) Registration is required to participate. To register, simply click on the link provided beneath the workshop description.

Exploring the Solar System
Audience: Grades 4-8, In-service, Informal and Pre-service Educators
Registration Deadline: Sept. 25, 2016 (maximum of 30 participants)
Event Date: Sept. 29, 2016, 9 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. CDT
Come explore the solar system from a unique mathematical perspective. Using NASA STEM activities, participants will investigate worlds beyond our planet Earth and probe the origins of our universe. Everywhere imaginable, NASA is out there! Activities presented will be aligned to Next Generation Science Standards domain of Earth and Space Sciences; Space Systems.
Register Online: https://www.etouches.com/201521

For more information and a complete list of upcoming NASA Educator Professional Development workshops, visit http://education.ssc.nasa.gov/workshops.asp.

Solar System Ambassadors Program Accepting Applications
Audience: All Educators
Application Period: Sept. 1-30, 2016

The NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory Solar System Ambassadors Program, a nationwide network of space enthusiast volunteers, will be accepting applications from Sept. 1 through Sept. 30, 2016.

Highly motivated individuals will be given the opportunity to represent NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory as volunteer SSAs to the public for a one-year, renewable term beginning Jan. 1, 2017.

While applications are being sought nationwide, interested parties from the following areas are especially encouraged to apply: Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Nebraska, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. SSA hopes to add 100 new volunteers to the program in 2017.

To learn more about the SSA Program and to apply online, visit https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/ssa/home.cfm. The Announcement of Opportunity and application form will be available on Sept. 1.

If you have questions about this opportunity, contact Kay Ferrari, SSA coordinator, by email at ambassad@jpl.nasa.gov.

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Center for Astronomy Education Regional Teaching Exchanges and Workshops — Fall/Winter 2016-2017
Audience: Current and Future College Instructors of Astronomy
Next Event Date: Sept. 24, 2016

NASA’s Center for Astronomy Education, or CAE, announces a series of regional teaching exchanges and workshops for astronomy and space science educators.

Teaching exchanges foster a sense of community among geographically linked current and future college instructors of astronomy. Regional experts from the broader CAE community are ready to provide the opportunity for you to meet your neighbors, expand your instructional repertoire and share your own expertise.

Workshops provide participants with experiences needed to create effective and productive active-learning classroom environments. Workshop leaders model best practices in implementing many different classroom-tested instructional strategies. But more importantly, workshop participants will gain first-hand experience implementing these proven strategies.

Sept. 24, 2016 — Seattle University in Seattle, Washington
CAE Northwest Regional Teaching Exchange

Sept. 24, 2016 — Guilford Technical Community College in Jamestown, North Carolina
CAE Southeast Regional Teaching Exchange

For more information and to register for the teaching exchanges, visit http://astronomy101.jpl.nasa.gov/workshops/index.cfm.

Inquiries about this series of events should be directed to Gina Brissenden at gbrissenden@as.arizona.edu.

CAE is funded through NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Exoplanet Exploration Program.

Free ‘NASA’s Journey to Mars’ Planetarium/Dome Show
Audience: Formal and Informal Educators

Are you looking for ways to prepare your students for STEM-related career opportunities? Do you want to spark their interest in pushing the boundaries of technology and innovation? Right now, NASA’s fleet of Mars robotic explorers is paving the way for human exploration of the solar system in the coming decades. Have your students join NASA in preparing for a monumental journey of a lifetime — to Mars!

“NASA’s Journey to Mars” is a short planetarium presentation that can be used in the educational domes of your school district, as well as local planetariums, to inspire interest in STEM. To learn more, including how you can acquire the show for use in your area, visit https://www.nasa.gov/feature/journey-of-a-lifetime-mars-education-resources/.

Please direct questions about the “NASA’s Journey to Mars” planetarium/dome show to Elsie Weigel at elsie.weigel@nasa.gov.

Do you want more NASA science? Visit http://science.nasa.gov/.

Don’t miss out on upcoming NASA education opportunities.
For a full list of events, opportunities and more, visit the Educators and Students Current Opportunity pages on NASA’s website:
— Educators https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/current-opps-index.html
— Students https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/current-opps-index.html

Are you looking for NASA educational materials to support your STEM curriculum?
Search hundreds of resources by subject, grade level, type and keyword at https://www.nasa.gov/education/resources/.

Find NASA science resources for your classroom. NASA Wavelength is a digital collection of Earth and space science resources for educators of all levels — from elementary to college, to out-of-school programs. http://nasawavelength.org/

Visit NASA Education on the web:
NASA Office of Education: https://www.nasa.gov/education
For Educators: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/index.html
For Students: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/index.html
NASA Kids’ Club: https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub

Did you miss last week’s NASA Education Science WOW! message?
Visit the Science WOW! blog for an archive of previous messages.
https://blogs.nasa.gov/educationsciencewow/

NASA Education “Science WOW!” Message — Sept. 14, 2016

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Science Always Starts With a Question …

This Week’s Question: How Much Water Is on Earth?

Earth has a lot of water. It’s one of the things that makes our big, blue planet so special. Visit this site for a video and poster that answer this week’s question: http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/water/en/.

Have You Seen This?

Check out the new Ocean Worlds: Water in the Solar System and Beyond feature.

Oceans define our home planet, covering the majority of Earth’s surface and driving the water cycle that dominates our land and atmosphere. But more profound still, the story of our oceans envelops our home in a far larger context that reaches deep into the universe and places us in a rich family of ocean worlds that span our solar system and beyond.

Learn more at https://www.nasa.gov/specials/ocean-worlds/.

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

**NEW** NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies Seeks Educators and Students for Climate Change Research Initiative
Audience: 9-12 Educators and Graduate Students
Application Deadline: Sept. 19, 2016

The NASA GISS Climate Change Research Initiative is an opportunity for high school educators and graduate students to work directly with NASA scientists in a NASA research project associated with the science related to climate change.

High school STEM educators participating in this yearlong opportunity will become associate researchers at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and STEM education experts. They will integrate NASA education resources and content into their classrooms while improving STEM education within their communities.

For graduate students, this yearlong opportunity will not conflict with the student’s course work and class schedule during the fall and spring. The internship is considered to be a part-time position that supports the graduate student’s major area of study.

All applicants must be U.S. citizens who reside within a 50-mile radius of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, located in New York City.

Applications are due Sept. 19, 2016.

For more information, visit http://www.giss.nasa.gov/edu/ccri/.

Please direct inquiries about the NASA GISS Climate Change Research Initiative to Matthew Pearce at matthew.d.pearce@nasa.gov.

2016 von Kármán Lecture Series — Attend in Person or View Online
Audience: All Educators; Students in Grades 9-12 and Higher Education
Next Lecture Date: Sept. 22, 2016, at 7 p.m. PDT (10 p.m. EDT)

The Theodore von Kármán Lecture Series, named after the founder of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and presented by JPL’s Office of Communication and Education, shares the excitement of the space program’s missions, instruments and other technologies.

Lectures take place twice per month, on consecutive Thursdays and Fridays. The Thursday lectures take place in JPL’s Theodore von Kármán Auditorium, and Friday lectures take place at Pasadena City College’s Vosloh Forum. Both start at 7 p.m. PDT (10 p.m. EDT). Admission and parking are free for all lectures. No reservations are required, but seating is limited. The Thursday evening lectures are streamed live for viewing online. Archives of past lectures are also available online.

Next Lecture in the Series:

Revealing Saturn: Cassini Science Highlights and the Grand Finale
Event Date: Sept. 22 and Sept. 23, 2016, at 7 p.m. PDT (10 p.m. EDT)
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures_archive.php?year=2016&month=9
The Cassini mission’s findings have revolutionized our understanding of Saturn. With its mission winding down, what new puzzles will Cassini solve before it plunges into Saturn’s atmosphere? Cassini Project Scientist Dr. Linda Spilker will present highlights of Cassini’s ambitious inquiry at Saturn and an overview of science observations in the final orbits. Dr. Earl Maize, Cassini program manager, will discuss Cassini’s exciting challenges and the final year of the mission, ultimately flying through a region where no spacecraft has ever flown before.

Questions about this series should be directed to http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/contact_JPL.php.

**NEW** Join STEM@NASA Goddard in Celebrating International Observe the Moon Night!
Audience: All Educators and Students
Event Date: Sept. 28, 2016, 1-1:30 p.m. EDT

Are you ready to look at the moon in an entirely new way? Join NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center on Sept. 28, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT for STEM@NASA Goddard: International Observe the Moon Night. During this 30-minute event, Andrea Jones, education specialist for Planetary Science Institute at NASA Goddard, will share how International Observe the Moon Night encourages appreciation and understanding of our moon and its connection to NASA planetary science and exploration.

The program will stream live on NASA Goddard’s Ustream channel, and participants will be able to submit questions by email and Twitter.

For more information, please contact Erin McKinley at erin.e.mckinley@nasa.gov.

**NEW** Celebrate Solar Week — Fall 2016
Audience: Informal Educators and Students in Grades 5-9
Event Dates: Oct. 17-21, 2016

Solar Week, October 17-21, provides a weeklong series of web-based activities with a focus on the sun-Earth connection. Young people ages 10-14 can learn about solar careers, sunspots, solar eclipses, solar energy and solar storms through a series of cool facts, activities and games.

Solar Week is ideal for young teens or groups wanting to know more about the solar system, the stars or astronomy in general. Many activities are suitable for fun in the computer lab as well. After doing the activities, participants can interact on the bulletin board with leading scientists at the forefront of sun-Earth research. Solar Week is great for learning about our nearest star, the sun.

To learn more and to register to participate, visit http://www.solarweek.org.

Questions about Solar Week may be emailed to solarweek@solarweek.org.

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

**NEW** Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators

The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative at Texas State University is presenting a series of free webinars open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Registration is required to participate. To register, simply click on the link provided beneath the webinar description.

Lava Layering: Making and Mapping a Volcano
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 5-8
Event Date: Sept. 14, 2016, at 7 p.m. EDT
The focus of this webinar is interpreting geologic history through volcano formation and excavation. Baking soda, vinegar and play dough are used to model fluid lava flows. Various colors of play dough identify different eruption events. Students will (1) Construct a model of a volcano, (2) Produce lava flows, (3) Observe, draw, record, and interpret the history and stratigraphy of a volcano produced by other students, and (4) Draw connections between Earth and Mars by studying volcanic features on each. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/196508

Seeing Your Students at NASA: STEM Careers Exploration Webquest
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 6-12
Event Date: Sept. 19, 2016, at 6 p.m. EDT
Consider using a webquest in your classroom to engage students in guided inquiry. Students will begin to identify STEM career opportunities that they are interested in while clicking on video links about scientists and engineers who work with environmental issues and problems. The webquest and resources may be used by students working independently or for the whole class to stimulate discussion and collaboration.
Link to the webquest:
https://pmm.pps.eosdis.nasa.gov/education/interactive/stem-careers-exploration
Register online to participate:
https://www.etouches.com/199703

Seeing Your Students at NASA: Rocks From Space and Other Worlds
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 3-8
Event Date: Sept. 20, 2016, at 5 p.m. EDT
Astromaterials scientists at NASA study rocks and “soil” samples from other planetary bodies. Learn how students can use GLOBE materials to study Earth rocks and soils; find out about the Lunar and Meteorite Certification program for educators; and take a tour of the various missions and research NASA has conducted and continues to conduct in our solar system and beyond. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/198916

For a full schedule of upcoming webinars, visit http://www.txstate-epdc.net/events/.

Please direct questions about this series of webinars to Steve Culivan at stephen.p.culivan@nasa.gov.

Free Education Webinar From the GOES-R Education Proving Ground — GOES-R: Countdown to Launch!
Audience: 6-12 Educators
Event Date: Sept. 17, 2016, at 11:30 a.m. EDT

The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites-R series is the next generation of geostationary Earth-observing systems. The GOES-R series satellites will provide continuous imagery and atmospheric measurements of Earth’s Western Hemisphere. The satellites will collect lightning data and monitor space weather to provide critical atmospheric, hydrologic, oceanic, climatic, solar and space data. The first satellite in the GOES-R series is scheduled to launch in October 2016.

To help educators prepare for the new satellite imagery and data that will be available during the GOES-R era, the GOES-R Education Proving Ground will host a series of education webcasts leading up to launch.

The webinars will take place on the following Saturday mornings at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

Sept. 17, 2016: Countdown to Launch!

For more information, including log-in instructions for the webinars, visit http://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/education/goesr/.

Please direct questions about this series of webinars to Margaret Mooney at Margaret.Mooney@ssec.wisc.edu.

GLOBE El Niño Field Campaign and Webinar — Using El Niño GLOBE Data for Scientific Research
Audience: K-12 Educators
Next Webinar Date: Sept. 19, 2016, at 8 p.m. EDT

El Niño and La Niña are important phenomena that can impact the climate by causing global flooding and droughts as well as changes in seasonal weather. These interactions around the world are called teleconnections. Because of the importance of this issue, a GLOBE ENSO (El Niño Southern Oscillation) Campaign has been formulated to engage students in determining where and how much El Niño affects local places and to put students in contact with their local environment.

To learn more about the campaign and how to participate, visit http://www.globe.gov/web/el-nino/el-nino-campaign.

To help educators prepare for the El Niño Campaign, GLOBE is hosting a series of free education webinars to discuss the mechanics of the campaign, give updates on data collection, and give participants the opportunity to learn science content from experts.

The final hourlong webinar in the series will take place on the following date at 8 p.m. EDT.

Sept. 19, 2016: El Niño Student Campaign Refresher and Update

For more information, including log-in instructions for the webinars and recordings of previous webinars in the series, visit http://www.globe.gov/web/el-nino/el-nino-campaign/webinars.

Please direct questions about this opportunity and series of webinars to http://www.globe.gov/support/contact.

**NEW** Educator Workshop — Comets Close Up
Audience: Formal and Informal Educators of Grades 6-12
Event Date: Sept. 24, 2016, 8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. PDT

The Rosetta spacecraft is on a 10-year mission to study the comet “67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko” (C-G) and answer questions about comets. Join lead scientists for the Rosetta mission in an educational workshop that explores hands-on activities and resources for engaging students in the science of comets and small bodies.

In this workshop, Rosetta project scientist Bonnie Buratti and project manager Art Chmielewski will share some of the basic physics of comets and discuss how the Rosetta mission was able to land on one for the first time. Hear about the mission’s latest discoveries, see incredible up-close images of the comet, and get the inside scoop on a second landing on the comet scheduled for Sept. 30, 2016.

The target audience for the workshop is formal and informal educators of grades 6-12, but it is open to all educators.

The event will take place Sept. 24, 2016, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. PDT at the von Kármán Auditorium at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

For more information, directions to the workshop location, and instructions for reserving a spot, visit http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/events/2016/9/24/educator-workshop-comets-close-up.

To learn more about the Rosetta mission, visit http://rosetta.jpl.nasa.gov/.

Please direct questions about this workshop to Andrea Angrum at 818-354-6775.

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Center for Astronomy Education Regional Teaching Exchanges and Workshops — Fall/Winter 2016-2017
Audience: Current and Future College Instructors of Astronomy
Next Event Date: Sept. 17, 2016

NASA’s Center for Astronomy Education, or CAE, announces a series of regional teaching exchanges and workshops for astronomy and space science educators.

Teaching exchanges foster a sense of community among geographically linked current and future college instructors of astronomy. Regional experts from the broader CAE community are ready to provide the opportunity for you to meet your neighbors, expand your instructional repertoire and share your own expertise.

Workshops provide participants with experiences needed to create effective and productive active-learning classroom environments. Workshop leaders model best practices in implementing many different classroom-tested instructional strategies. But more importantly, workshop participants will gain first-hand experience implementing these proven strategies.

Sept. 17, 2016 — Westchester Community College in Valhalla, New York
CAE Northeast Regional Teaching Exchange

For more information and to register for the teaching exchanges, visit http://astronomy101.jpl.nasa.gov/workshops/index.cfm.

Inquiries about this series of events should be directed to Gina Brissenden at gbrissenden@as.arizona.edu.

CAE is funded through NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Exoplanet Exploration Program.

Do you want more NASA science? Visit http://science.nasa.gov/.

Don’t miss out on upcoming NASA education opportunities.
For a full list of events, opportunities and more, visit the Educators and Students Current Opportunity pages on NASA’s website:
— Educators https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/current-opps-index.html
— Students https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/current-opps-index.html

Are you looking for NASA educational materials to support your STEM curriculum?
Search hundreds of resources by subject, grade level, type and keyword at https://www.nasa.gov/education/resources/.

Find NASA science resources for your classroom. NASA Wavelength is a digital collection of Earth and space science resources for educators of all levels — from elementary to college, to out-of-school programs. http://nasawavelength.org/

Visit NASA Education on the web:
NASA Office of Education: https://www.nasa.gov/education
For Educators: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/index.html
For Students: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/index.html
NASA Kids’ Club: https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub

Did you miss last week’s NASA Education Science WOW! message?
Visit the Science WOW! blog for an archive of previous messages.
https://blogs.nasa.gov/educationsciencewow/

NASA Education “Science WOW!” Message — Sept. 7, 2016

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Check out the latest edition of NASA Education’s “Science WOW!” — your source for NASA opportunities in science education delivered “Weekly On Wednesday.”

Science Always Starts With a Question …

This Week’s Question: What Is OSIRIS-REx?

OSIRIS-REx is set to launch on Sept. 8, but what is it? Watch this video to learn the answer: https://youtu.be/3194ROG7VCE.

Have You Seen This?

Want to fly along with NASA’s fleet of Earth science missions? Or travel to planets, their moons, asteroids, comets and more? Is an immersive, real-time visualization of all planets that have been discovered around other stars what you’re looking for? Check out the NASA’s Eyes applications for Mac, PC and mobile devices!

Visit http://eyes.nasa.gov/ to download the app and get started.

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Opportunities for Future Scientists of All Ages

**NEW** What’s New at NASA’s Space Place Website?
Audience: K-6 Educators and Students

Space Place is a NASA website for elementary students, their teachers, and their parents. Check it out at www.spaceplace.nasa.gov.

New Resources:

Galactic Explorer — A galaxy is a huge collection of gas, dust and billions of stars held together by gravity. Visit as many galaxies as possible in Galactic Explorer, our new NASA Space Place game!
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/galactic-explorer

Sun Comparison — Our sun is a bright, hot ball of hydrogen and helium at the center of our solar system. So hot, that it’s actually 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface and 27 million degrees Fahrenheit in the core! But how does our sun compare to other stars?
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/sun-compare

Sunscreen Activity — The sun sends energy toward Earth in the form of ultraviolet, or UV, light. We can’t see UV light with our eyes, but we are affected by it. Make handprint art using UV light.
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/sunscreen-activity

NASA Space Place Calendar — Looking for some hands-on activities and fun facts to use in the classroom? Check out our 2016-2017 NASA Space Place Calendar! This calendar includes many noteworthy space dates and links to related content on our website.
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/calendar

Rovers on Mars — Over the years, we’ve sent four rovers to study the cold, red planet we call Mars. We even plan to send another one in just a few years. Meet the team of rovers and discover what we’ve learned from each one.

Sojourner
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/mars-sojourner

Spirit and Opportunity
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/mars-spirit-opportunity

Curiosity
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/mars-curiosity

Mars2020
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/mars-2020

Back to School
Summer is almost over, and that means it’s time to head back to the classroom! Here are some helpful resources:

Math Activities
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/math-activities

Social Media
To keep up with the latest, follow us on Facebook and Twitter @nasaspaceplace.

Special Days to Celebrate
Find out about noteworthy days in NASA and space history that you can observe in your classroom.

Sept. 18 — Voyager 1 took the first photo of Earth and the moon together in 1977.
Find out what this spacecraft is doing now.
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/voyager-to-planets.

Sept. 23 — Neptune was discovered on this day in 1846.
Neptune is dark, cold and very windy. What else do we know about this planet?
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/all-about-neptune

Oct. 1 — Happy Birthday, NASA!
Today, NASA opened its doors for the first time. But did you know there are also other agencies in space?
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/other-agencies

Oct. 15 — Today, Uranus will be at its closest approach to Earth.
Fun Fact: Uranus actually has faint rings.
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/all-about-uranus

Oct. 21 — Get ready for the peak of the Orionid meteor shower!
What causes a meteor shower?
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/meteor-shower

Share
Do you want some help spreading the word about NASA’s Space Place? We have a page with ready-to-use website descriptions, logos and links to all our social media. Check out http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/share.

Subscribe to Our Monthly E-newsletter!
Interested in keeping up with the latest and greatest news from NASA Space Place? Subscribe to the NASA Space Place Gazette. The NASA Space Place Gazette is for educators, parents and space enthusiasts of all ages. It includes special bulletins for noteworthy days and NASA events, such as a lunar eclipse, planet flyby or rover landing. It’s easy to subscribe — just click here.
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/subscribe

Send Feedback
Please let us know your ideas about ways to use The Space Place in your teaching. Send them to info@spaceplace.nasa.gov.

NASA’s Digital Learning Network Event — Live From Juno: Exploring Jupiter
Audience: All Educators and Students
Event Date: Sept. 12, 2016, 1 p.m. EDT

After five years of travel, Juno is in orbit actively exploring the largest planet in our solar system. Join NASA’s Digital Learning Network for a live webcast showcasing what we have learned in the first two months since Juno’s arrival at Jupiter and what we expect to learn throughout the course of this mission. The program will be live from two NASA centers, feature special guests and include questions from the online audience.

The event will be webcast on the NASA DLiNfo Channel on Sept. 12, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT.

Ask questions via Twitter using #askDLN, via Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NASADLN, or via email to DLiNfochannel@gmail.com.

For more information, visit https://www.nasa.gov/dln.

**NEW** Be a Citizen Earth Scientist With New ‘GLOBE Observer’ App
Audience: All Educators and Students
Initial Release Phase: Aug. 31-Sept. 14, 2016

Want to be a citizen Earth scientist? To contribute to NASA’s studies of our home planet, all you need is a smartphone, access to the outdoors, and the new “GLOBE Observer” app.

Now available for Apple and Android phones, the app is an initiative of the Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment program. For over two decades, GLOBE has enabled schools and students in over 110 countries to investigate their local environment and put their observations in a global context.

The initial release of the app allows users to collect observations of clouds, which are a critical part of the global climate system. From Aug. 31 – Sept.14, the GLOBE Observer team challenges citizen scientists to collect cloud observations that coincide with the overpass of cloud-observing satellites over their location. Through the GLOBE Observer app, users will be informed about the timing of the satellite overpass at their respective locations. Users can also view daily maps of the satellite’s path by following GLOBE Observer on Facebook or Twitter.

To learn more, visit https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/nasa-launches-new-citizen-science-opportunity and http://observer.globe.gov.

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

**NEW** Take ‘STEM on Station’ Back to School With You
Audience: K-12 Educators

Looking for ways to bring the space station into your classroom? Visit NASA’s STEM on Station website to learn about the station, the research currently taking place there, and exciting ways to get your students involved. Take a look at the themed “Teacher Toolkits” to find lesson plans and other resources related to a monthly topic. STEM on Station has everything you need, all in one place!

More opportunities and resources await you at this education website focused on the space station. https://www.nasa.gov/education/STEMstation

NASA’s Digital Learning Network Event – OSIRIS-REx L-1 Webcast
Audience: All Educators and Students
Event Date: Sept. 7, 2016, 1 – 2 p.m. EDT

As NASA prepares to launch the first U.S. asteroid sample return mission, the Digital Learning Network is hosting a live interactive video chat with special guests including a Launch Services Program engineer. Tune in to learn more about OSIRIS-REx, which will reach a near-Earth asteroid called Bennu in 2018 and return a sample to Earth in 2023. The DLN Live event will stream on the DLiNfo Channel one day before launch. Tweet questions with #askDLN or email DLiNfochannel@gmail.com.

Please direct questions about this event to DLiNfochannel@gmail.com.

The one-hour event will be webcast on the NASA DLiNfo Channel on Sept. 7, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT.

For more information and other DLN events, visit https://www.nasa.gov/dln .

**NEW** Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators

The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative at Texas State University is presenting a series of free webinars open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Registration is required to participate. To register, simply click on the link provided beneath the webinar description.

Seeing Your Students at NASA: So You Want to Be an Astronaut and Other NASA Careers
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades K-12
Event Date: Sept. 8, 2016, at 6 p.m. EDT
Working at NASA is not just being an astronaut. Explore the many NASA STEM careers needed to successfully accomplish the unique, exciting missions that explore and build a better understanding of Earth and the universe beyond. NASA career education curriculum and resources will also be integrated into this online learning session. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/197933

Seeing Your Students at NASA: Climate Kids — Dream of a Green Career
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades K-12
Event Date: Sept. 12, 2016, at 6 p.m. EDT
The Climate Kids website features sections through which participants gain a deeper understanding of climate change issues. The section titles are Learn the Basics, See the Impacts, Think Like a Scientist, Be Part of the Solution and Dream of a Green Career. This NASA education resource includes articles, videos, images and games focused on the science of climate change. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/196236

Lava Layering: Making and Mapping a Volcano
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 5-8
Event Date: Sept. 14, 2016, at 7 p.m. EDT
The focus of this webinar is interpreting geologic history through volcano formation and excavation. Baking soda, vinegar and play dough are used to model fluid lava flows. Various colors of play dough identify different eruption events. Students will (1) Construct a model of a volcano, (2) Produce lava flows, (3) Observe, draw, record, and interpret the history and stratigraphy of a volcano produced by other students, and (4) Draw connections between Earth and Mars by studying volcanic features on each. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/196508

For a full schedule of upcoming webinars, visit http://www.txstate-epdc.net/events/.

Please direct questions about this series of webinars to Steve Culivan at stephen.p.culivan@nasa.gov.

Science Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

Center for Astronomy Education Regional Teaching Exchanges and Workshops — Fall/Winter 2016-2017
Audience: Current and Future College Instructors of Astronomy
Next Event Date: Sept. 17, 2016

NASA’s Center for Astronomy Education, or CAE, announces a series of regional teaching exchanges and workshops for astronomy and space science educators.

Teaching exchanges foster a sense of community among geographically linked current and future college instructors of astronomy. Regional experts from the broader CAE community are ready to provide the opportunity for you to meet your neighbors, expand your instructional repertoire and share your own expertise.

Workshops provide participants with experiences needed to create effective and productive active-learning classroom environments. Workshop leaders model best practices in implementing many different classroom-tested instructional strategies. But more importantly, workshop participants will gain first-hand experience implementing these proven strategies.

Sept. 17, 2016 — Westchester Community College in Valhalla, New York
CAE Northeast Regional Teaching Exchange

For more information and to register for the teaching exchanges, visit http://astronomy101.jpl.nasa.gov/workshops/index.cfm.

Inquiries about this series of events should be directed to Gina Brissenden at gbrissenden@as.arizona.edu.

CAE is funded through NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Exoplanet Exploration Program.

**NEW** NASA Unveils New Public Web Portal for Research Results
Audience: All Educators and Students

With the launch of a new agency public access portal, public access to NASA-funded research data now is just a click away. PubSpace is a repository of original science journal articles produced by NASA-funded research and available online without a fee.

While the agency always has made access to its research a high priority, the focus now is to make NASA science data more easily obtainable via “one-stop shopping.” This increased public access is intended to accelerate the dissemination of fundamental research results to advance scientific knowledge and help ensure the nation’s future prosperity.

The NASA-Funded Research Results portal was created in response to a 2013 request from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, which directed science-funding agencies to develop plans to increase access to the results of federally funded research. NASA’s public access plan was developed in coordination with the science and technology research community across the agency. NASA will continue to consult with the scientific community, academic institutions, publishers and other federal agencies to implement this plan and increase access to research results.

For more information, visit https://www.nasa.gov/open/researchaccess.

Do you want more NASA science? Visit http://science.nasa.gov/.

Don’t miss out on upcoming NASA education opportunities.
For a full list of events, opportunities and more, visit the Educators and Students Current Opportunity pages on NASA’s website:
— Educators https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/current-opps-index.html
— Students https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/current-opps-index.html

Are you looking for NASA educational materials to support your STEM curriculum?
Search hundreds of resources by subject, grade level, type and keyword at https://www.nasa.gov/education/resources/.

Find NASA science resources for your classroom. NASA Wavelength is a digital collection of Earth and space science resources for educators of all levels — from elementary to college, to out-of-school programs. http://nasawavelength.org/

Visit NASA Education on the web:
NASA Office of Education: https://www.nasa.gov/education
For Educators: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/index.html
For Students: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/index.html
NASA Kids’ Club: https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub

Did you miss last week’s NASA Education Science WOW! message?
Visit the Science WOW! blog for an archive of previous messages.
https://blogs.nasa.gov/educationsciencewow/