NASA Education “Science WOW!” Message — May 10, 2017

NASA’s Digital Learning Network Special Event With Beth Nielsen Chapman and Rocky Alvey
Audience: Educators and Students in Grades 5-12
Event Date: May 18, 2017, at 11 a.m. EDT

Join NASA’s Digital Learning Network on May 18, 2017, at 11 a.m. EDT for a special live event to celebrate the 100th anniversary of NASA’s Langley Research Center. The event will feature Grammy-nominated songwriter Beth Nielsen Chapman and fellow songwriter Rocky Alvey.

Beth Nielsen Chapman has released nine solo albums and written seven #1 hits. Her songs have been recorded by many artists including Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Bette Midler, Elton John, Keb Mo’, Indigo Girls and Faith Hill. In 2012, Chapman released “The Mighty Sky,” a Grammy-nominated astronomy CD for kids of all ages. This work was featured during NASA’s 2012 Summer of Innovation program to inspire students to learn about the universe and their place in it and to pursue STEM studies.

Rocky Alvey is director of the Vanderbilt Dyer Observatory and is also a songwriter. His collaborations with Nielsen on “The Mighty Sky” album include writing lyrics and developing lesson plans based on the songs and their content.

Those tuning in to the webcast may ask questions via email at dlinfochannel@gmail.com and via social media using #askDLN.

To learn more about this event, visit https://www.nasa.gov/dln/live.

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

Please send any questions about this opportunity to dlinfochannel@gmail.com.

Student Spaceflight Experiments Program — Mission 12 to the International Space Station
Audience: School Districts Serving Grades 5-12, Informal Education Institutions, Colleges and Universities
Inquiry Deadline: May 31, 2017
Start Date: September 5, 2017

The National Center for Earth and Space Science Education and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Space Education announce a science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, opportunity for school districts across the U.S. and space station partner nations. The newest flight opportunity, Mission 12 to the International Space Station, gives students across a community the ability to design and propose real experiments to fly in low Earth orbit on the space station. This opportunity is part of the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program, or SSEP.

Each participating community will receive a microgravity research mini-laboratory capable of supporting a single microgravity experiment and all launch services to fly the minilab to the space station in spring/summer 2018 and return it to Earth. An experiment design competition in each community — engaging typically 300+ students — allows student teams to design and propose real experiments vying for their community′s reserved mini-lab.

Content resources for teachers and students support foundational instruction on science in microgravity and experimental design. Additional SSEP programming uses the experiment design competition to engage the community in embracing a learning-community model for STEM education.

This competition is open to students in grades 5-12 and college. Informal education groups and organizations also are encouraged to participate. Interested communities must inquire about the program no later than May 31, 2017. The National Center for Earth and Space Science Education is available to help interested communities in the U.S. secure the needed funding.

To learn more about this opportunity, visit the “SSEP Mission 12 to International Space Station” National Announcement of Opportunity at http://ssep.ncesse.org/2017/03/new-flight-opportunity-for-school-districts-announcing-student-spaceflight-experiments-program-ssep-mission-12-to-the-international-space-station-starting-september-2017/.

SSEP is enabled through a strategic partnership with DreamUp PBC and NanoRacks LLC working with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the use of the International Space Station as a national laboratory. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (http://www.iss-casis.org/) is a national partner of SSEP. To view a list of all SSEP national partners, visit http://ssep.ncesse.org/national-partners/.

If you have any questions about this opportunity, please email SSEP National Program Director Jeff Goldstein at jeffgoldstein@ncesse.org.

NASA Seeks Creative Arts Inspired by Cassini’s Mission to Saturn
Audience: All Educators and Students Ages 13 and Older

During nearly two decades in space, Cassini has inspired people on Earth. Cassini has sent home thousands of images of icy moons and resplendent rings. It helped discover erupting water geysers on Enceladus and seas of methane on Titan. It showed us a view of Earth as a blue dot.

Now the mission is moving toward its “Grand Finale,” and in September 2017 it will finally draw to a dramatic end. NASA’s Cassini team would like to know this: How has Cassini inspired you?

Visit the Cassini Inspires website to explore images and more from the mission. Then use inspiration to get creative. Write a poem. Paint a picture. Choreograph a dance. Tell a story. The possibilities are endless!

Share your creation with the NASA Cassini team on the social media platform of your choice, such as Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or others. Tag it #CassiniInspires. Or send it directly to cassinimission@jpl.nasa.gov.

To learn more, visit https://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/cassiniinspires/.

Science Opportunities for Educators of Grades K-12

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.

Picking Up STEAM: Using Models to Understand the Solar Eclipse
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades K-12
Event Date: May 10, 2017, at 5 p.m. EDT
Participants will be introduced to problem-based inquiry learning activities related to the solar eclipse. Learn how to bring STEM challenges and the adventure of space exploration to students in the classroom. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/237938

**NEW** International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: Exploring the Extreme
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 5-8
Event Date: May 11, 2017, at 6 p.m. EDT
Explore the over-50-year history of spacewalking. Investigate the critical role of spacewalks in human space exploration, the harsh space environment endured during spacewalks, and how spacesuits are designed to protect astronauts from the space environment. NASA STEM classroom lessons, online resources and teaching strategies will be integrated into this “walking with the stars” webinar. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/235769

**NEW** International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: One-Year Crew
Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades K-12
Event Date: May 16, 2017, at 6:30 p.m. EDT
Educators will explore the STEM on Station website and celebrate the “One-Year Crew” and their yearlong mission on board the International Space Station. Participants will receive NASA “STEM on Station” resources, lesson plans, videos and education news to help bring space into the classroom. Learn about astronaut Scott Kelly’s Year in Space mission, including the 10,944 sunrises and sunsets that transpired during his mission, his need for more than 700 hours of exercise to keep strong, and his drinking 730 liters of recycled urine and sweat. Educators will be presented with hands-on, standard-aligned activities that they can take back to the classroom to inspire their students. The activities will involve radiation, sleep restraints, solar energy and space food. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/244258

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

Questions about this series of webinars should be directed to Steve Culivan at stephen.p.culivan@nasa.gov.

Take Your Students on a Series of Virtual Field Trips!
Audience: Grades 6-12 — Students and Educators, Formal and Informal
Next Event Date: May 18, 2017, 2 p.m. CDT

Bring your students along on a series of virtual field trips to NASA centers where students will go behind-the-scenes to see cool NASA places and visit with NASA professionals. Each session is 15-30 minutes long and includes an interactive question-and-answer session. Pre-registration is not required.

Upcoming virtual field trips include:

Adventures in Aeronautics — May 18, 2017, 9 a.m. CDT
Learn about high-flying careers with NASA Aircraft Operations. Join Mallory Yates, aerospace engineer, and Angela Bauer, deputy engineering branch chief of the Aircraft Operations Division, for a behind-the-scenes look at aviation at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

Fun With Technology — May 22, 2017, 10 a.m. CDT
Take a virtual field trip to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Go behind-the-scenes with NASA intern Kaitlin Lostroscio to learn about NASA robotics.

These virtual field trips are a series of events offered to students and teachers as a component of “The Search for STEMnauts” — a virtual scavenger hunt where student teams in grades 6-12 solve puzzles, unravel riddles, break codes and make weekly virtual field trips to exclusive NASA locations. Student teams can even check out where they stand among the competition by following real-time updates on “The Search for STEMnauts” website!

This interactive, technical twist on a traditional scavenger hunt is offered through a partnership between NASA’s STEM on Station and Texas Instruments to provide students with a fun way to learn important STEM skills including coding and problem solving.

All students and educators (grades 6-12) are invited to participate in any virtual field trip offered. Participation in “The Search for STEMnauts” competition is not required. To learn more about these virtual field trips, including links to join in, go to https://education.ti.com/NASAliveevents.

For more information about “The Search for STEMnauts,” including how to register, visit www.STEMnauts.com.

Please direct questions about this opportunity to Kelly McCormick at Kelly.mccormick-1@nasa.gov.

NASA Mars Science: MAVEN Outreach Webinar — Mars and Venus: Terrestrial Analogues for Exoplanets
Audience: K-12 and Informal Educators
Event Date: May 24, 2017, 7 p.m. EDT

MAVEN Outreach Webinars are virtual gatherings of team members from the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission to offer professional development for formal and informal educators, troop leaders, museum docents, and others interested in MAVEN and Mars science.

Join the MAVEN team on May 24, 2017, at 7 p.m. EDT, for the Mars and Venus: Terrestrial Analogues for Exoplanets webinar. Learn about ways the MAVEN mission may help scientists understand how the atmospheres of other rocky worlds are also being eroded. Dr. Shannon Curry from the University of California Berkeley will discuss how planetary bodies such as Mars and Venus can be used to provide insight into how atmospheres evolve, as scientists model (and begin to observe directly) the atmospheres of exoplanets.

For more information, visit http://lasp.colorado.edu/home/maven/education-outreach/maven-outreach-webinars/.

Questions about this webinar should be directed to epomail@lasp.colorado.edu.

Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions

NASA Fundamental Physics Workshop 2017
Audience: Higher Education Educators and Students
Registration Deadline: May 17, 2017
Workshop Dates: May 31-June 2, 2017

The NASA Fundamental Physics Workshop 2017 will be held May 31-June 2, 2017, in Santa Barbara, California.

The workshop will provide a forum for NASA fundamental physics investigators to present results and discuss research ideas for future space experimentation with interested international and U.S. colleagues. Topic areas include atomic and molecular physics; fundamental forces and symmetries; dusty plasma physics; and condensed matter physics.

All interested scientists and researchers are invited to participate. The participation of the current NASA-funded investigators is strongly encouraged and kindly requested.

The deadline to register to attend the workshop is May 17, 2017. For more information and to register to attend, visit http://icpi.nasaprs.com/fpw2017.

Please direct questions about this workshop to Renee Atkins at ratkins@nasaprs.com.

2017 Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop
Audience: Higher Education Educators and Students
Abstract Submission Deadline: May 19, 2017
Workshop Dates: Aug. 21-25, 2017

The annual Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop will be held Aug. 21-25, 2017, at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

The Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop encourages knowledge sharing, professional development, and networking throughout the thermal and fluids engineering community within NASA, academia and the aerospace community at large. STEM faculty and university students are encouraged to attend, submit a poster or paper on their thermal/fluids work, take free training, or do a combination thereof.

Registration to attend the workshop is free. Participants interested in presenting at the conference, via manuscript or technical poster, must submit an abstract by May 19, 2017.

For more information about the workshop and how to submit an abstract for consideration, visit https://tfaws.nasa.gov/.

Please direct questions about this opportunity to Ramona Cummings at ramona.o.cummings@nasa.gov.

**NEW** Lloyd V. Berkner Space Policy Internships
Audience: Undergraduate and Graduate Students at U.S. Universities and Colleges
Application Deadline: June 2, 2017

The Space Studies Board is seeking applicants for the Lloyd V. Berkner Space Policy Internships for autumn 2017. The goal of the program is to provide promising undergraduate and graduate students with the opportunity to work in the area of civil space research policy in the nation’s capital.

Established in 1958, the Space Studies Board is the principal advisory group providing independent scientific and programmatic advice to NASA and other government agencies on all aspects of civil space research and associated ground-based activities. Interns typically undertake one or more short-term research projects designed to assist with or to enhance ongoing study projects.

Applicants must be registered students (undergraduate or graduate) at a U.S. university or college who have completed their junior year. Applicants should have long-term career goals in space science research, applications or policy.

For more information and a full list of eligibility requirements, visit http://sites.nationalacademies.org/SSB/SSB_052239.

Please direct questions about this internship to Dr. David H. Smith at dhsmith@nas.edu.