NASA “Science WOW!” Message – April 4, 2018

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


Science Always Starts With a Question …


This Week’s Question: Can I See Jupiter in the Night Sky?

This month, stargazers can spot Mars, Jupiter and a meteor shower! Find out when and where to look. This month’s “What’s Up” video has all the details.

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/381/whats-up-for-april-2018/

Want to learn more about the largest planet in our solar system? Learn all about Jupiter at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/jupiter/overview/.


Have You Seen This?


Do you want to take part in the Juno mission to Jupiter? Be a citizen scientist with JunoCam! Upload your images of Jupiter and help scientists decide what points of interest JunoCam will photograph.

Learn more at https://www.missionjuno.swri.edu/junocam/.


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** Download the New ‘Spacecraft AR’ App
Audience: All Educators and Students

NASA spacecraft travel to far-off destinations in space, but a new mobile app from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory brings spacecraft to you! The new app, called Spacecraft AR, uses the latest augmented reality (AR) technology to put virtual 3-D models of NASA’s robotic space explorers into any environment with a flat surface.

Download the new app to explore and snap pictures with 3-D rovers, space probes and more! Learn more at https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7082.

Questions about this opportunity should be directed to Holli.riebeek@nasa.gov.


NASA GLOBE Clouds: Spring Cloud Observations Data Challenge
Audience: All Educators and Students
Challenge Dates: March 15-April 15, 2018

The NASA GLOBE Clouds team at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, invites educators, students, and the public to enter up to 10 cloud observations per day from March 15-April 15, 2018. Observations can be logged using the GLOBE Program’s data entry options or the GLOBE Observer app. Participants with the most observations will be congratulated by a NASA scientist with a video posted on the NASA GLOBE Clouds website.

To learn more, visit https://www.globe.gov/web/marile.colonrobles/home/blog/-/blogs/37565448.

Questions about this opportunity should be directed to marile.colonrobles@nasa.gov.


Create Art Inspired by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope
Audience: All Educators and Students

In November 2016, a small group of artists visited NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, to see the James Webb Space Telescope in person for inspiration to create art. The resulting artwork included painting, poetry, sculpting, textiles, woodworking, music, silk screening, 3-D design, jewelry, posters, tattooing and letterpress printing.

Though only a few artists were able to physically visit the telescope, the team at GSFC was impressed by the number of talented people who were interested in participating and want to offer more artists a chance to participate virtually.

How can you participate? Browse through the collection of James Webb Space Telescope images and videos and see what inspires you. Create art! (Note: this is not limited to art you can hang on a wall.) Then, share it with NASA on social media with #JWSTArt, or email it to jwst@lists.nasa.gov.

There’s no deadline for submissions.

To find inspiration and learn the full details on how to participate, visit https://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/2017/nasa-invites-you-to-create-james-webb-space-telescope-inspired-art.

Email questions about this opportunity to jwst@lists.nasa.gov.

 


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.

Earth Right Now: Meteorology Educator Guide — Weather and Climate
Audience:
5-9, Informal and Pre-service Educators
Event Date: April 4, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. EDT
Participants will be introduced to the educator’s guide Meteorology: An Educator’s Resource for Inquiry-Based Learning for grades 5-9. Discussion will focus on the hands-on activities and low-cost equipment builds included in the guide. The activities address Next Generation Science Standards MS-ESS2.D and HS-ESS2.D. Register online to participate. https://www.eiseverywhere.com/316199

**NEW** Earth Right Now: Problem-Based Learning — Erosions and Landslides
Audience:
4-10, Informal and Pre-service Educators
Event Date: April 9, 2018, at 5 p.m. EDT
Explore the NASA Precipitation Education website and find videos, lesson plans, interactive websites and articles related to the water cycle, weather, climate and societal applications. Participants will discuss how the website’s resources can be used to design a problem-based learning (PBL) lesson. Register online to participate. https://www.eiseverywhere.com/322701

**NEW** Earth Right Now: Water Filtration and Engineering Design
Audience:
K-12, Informal and Pre-service Educators
Event Date: April 10, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. EDT
Learn about ECLSS — the Environmental Control and Life Support System — aboard the International Space Station that reclaims waste water from crew members’ urine, cabin condensation and waste from spacewalks. Explore lessons that challenge students to create, build and test a water filtration device using commonly available materials. Register online to participate. https://www.eiseverywhere.com/319065

**NEW** Earth Right Now: Weather and Climate
Audience:
6-8, Informal and Pre-service Educators
Event Date: April 12, 2018, at 6 p.m. EDT
Learn about weather and how it is forecast, and explore how weather and climate differ. NASA missions, STEM classroom resources and lessons will guide us through a “storm” of classroom activities that address Next Generation Science Standards MS-ESS2-5,6. Register online to participate. https://www.eiseverywhere.com/316063

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.


Earth Day Workshop: Investigating Our Earth From Above and Below
Audience: Educators of Grades K-12
Event Date: April 14, 2018, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. PDT

Join NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on April 14, 2018, from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. PST for an educator workshop to explore activities to celebrate Earth Day in the classroom. The workshop will take place at the Chino Basin Water Conservation District in Montclair, California.

Participants will investigate the water cycle in Southern California and demonstrate curriculum resources that help students explore rainfall patterns, aquifers and satellite data. Learn how engineering feats have allowed scientists to measure water from space. Bring your kids or grandkids to participate in youth education programs during the workshop!

For more information and to register to attend, visit https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/events/2018/4/14/earth-day-educator-workshop-investigating-our-earth-from-above-and-below/.

Please direct questions about this workshop to Brandon Rodriguez at Brandon.Rodriguez@jpl.nasa.gov.


**NEW** Free Webinar — Shake, Bake and Shout: Materials ISS Experiment-X (MISSE-X)
Audience: 5-12 Educators
Event Date: April 18, 2018, at 6 p.m. EDT

Join NASA’s Beginning Engineering, Science and Technology educators for a free 60-minute professional development webinar. Learn how NASA is using a series of experiments mounted externally on the space station to investigate the effects of long-term exposure to the harsh environment of space. Using NASA’s BEST engineering design process, participants will test a variety of materials to determine if they would be suitable for long-term use in space.

For more information and to register to participate, visit https://www.eiseverywhere.com/329527.

Please direct questions about this webinar to afrc-nasabestedu@mail.nasa.gov.


 **NEW** Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope Summer Institutes 2018
Audience: K-12 Educators
Registration Deadline for California Institute: June 4, 2018
Registration Deadline for Virginia Institutes: June 15, 2018

The Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope program allows educators and their students to operate a 34-meter (112-foot) radio telescope from the classroom. Partnered with scientists and other observatories from around the world, participants conduct real research and exploration.

Join the GAVRT team for a two-day training institute for educators. Attendees will learn about radio astronomy, current science campaigns available through the GAVRT program, and how the telescopes used by the program operate. Attendees will take part in question and answer sessions with professional radio astronomers.

Four institute sessions will be offered:
— June 12-14, 2018 — Columbia Memorial Space Center in Downey, California.
— June 26-27 and June 28-29, 2018 — National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.
— July 23-24, 2018 — Sydney, Australia.

Registration for the California session closes on June 4, 2018. Registration for the Virginia sessions closes on June 15, 2018.

For more information, visit https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/gavrt_summer_institute_0.pdf.

Questions about this workshop should be directed to mc@lcer.org.

 


Opportunities for Higher Education and Informal Institutions


NASA Stennis Community College and Education Faculty Fellowship Program
Audience: Full-time Faculty at Accredited Higher Education Institutions in Mississippi and Louisiana
Application Deadline: April 27, 2018, at 5 p.m. CDT
Fellowship Dates: June 4 – Aug. 10, 2018

The NASA Stennis Community College and Education Faculty Fellowship Program provides opportunities for STEM faculty to do research for 10 weeks during the summer at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens working full time at a two-year or four-year accredited university or college in Mississippi or Louisiana. The program provides a weekly stipend. Qualified faculty from minority-serving institutions are particularly encouraged to apply.

Applications are due April 27, 2018, at 5 p.m. CDT. For more information, visit https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/2018_nasa_stennis_community_college_and_education_summer_faculty_fellowship_program_announcement.pdf.

Please direct questions about this opportunity to mitch.krell@nasa.gov.


Free ‘Sun, Earth, Universe’ Exhibition Available for Eligible Institutions
Audience: Informal Science Education Institutions in the U.S. within the NISE Network (NISENet)
Application Deadline: May 1, 2018

In collaboration with NASA, NISENet is accepting applications from eligible institutions to receive a free “Sun, Earth, Universe” exhibition. This engaging and interactive museum exhibition about Earth and space science has been curated with science experts and designed for family audiences. Visit the site for eligibility details.

The exhibition is designed for NISENet partners located within the United States and U.S. territories. Applicants must be informal science education institutions such as science museums and science centers, children’s museums, natural history museums and nature centers, public planetariums and observatories, and NASA visitor centers.

To learn more, visit https://science.nasa.gov/news-articles/Free-Science-Exhibits-Available-for-Eligible-Institutions.

Please note that K-12 schools, afterschool programs, libraries, parks, summer camps and astronomy clubs are not eligible to exhibit. If your institution is not eligible, consider downloading a digital version of the “Explore Science: Earth & Space Toolkit” to engage audiences in hands-on Earth and space science activities with connections to science, technology and society. Digital toolkits are available for free download at: http://www.nisenet.org/earthspacekit.

Please direct questions about this opportunity to exhibits@nisenet.org.


Help NASA Search the Realm Beyond Neptune at Backyard Worlds: Planet 9
Audience: All Educators and Students
Project Timeframe: Ongoing

Is a large planet at the fringes of our solar system awaiting discovery, a world astronomers call Planet Nine? Using data from NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mission, NASA scientists are looking for this planet and for new brown dwarfs in the backyard of the solar system. But they need your help! Finding these dim objects requires the human eye to comb through the images to distinguish moving celestial bodies from ghosts and other artifacts. Participants in this citizen science project will share the credit for their discoveries in any scientific publications that result from the project.

For more information and to learn how to participate, visit the “Backyard Worlds: Planet 9” website at http://backyardworlds.org.

To learn more about NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer and its mission to image the entire sky in the infrared, visit https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/WISE/main/index.html.

Please direct questions about this opportunity to Marc Kuchner at marc.j.kuchner@nasa.gov.

 


Check out the ‘Explore NASA Science’ website!
Science starts with questions, leading to discoveries. Explore the redesigned NASA Science site and send us feedback. Visit https://science.nasa.gov. To view the site in Spanish, visit http://ciencia.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 http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/current-opps-index.html
— Students http://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 http://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/

Take Part in a Year of Education on Station
September 2017 – September 2018: Although on different crews, astronauts Joe Acaba and Ricky Arnold — both former teachers — will work aboard the International Space Station. Visit NASA’s A Year of Education on Station website for out-of-this-world resources and opportunities for K-16 students and educators.

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

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