Filed under: Competitions, Engineering, Higher Education, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
The 2010 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts Academic Linkage competition is a design project contest open to full-time undergraduate or graduate students majoring in engineering or science at an accredited college or university. The RASC-AL contest challenges participants to design projects based on real NASA projects. These design projects could then potentially be implemented by NASA. Student teams must submit abstracts by Feb. 5, 2010.
Please visit the official RASC-AL website for important guidelines and application instructions: http://www.nianet.org/rascal/index.html
Filed under: Competitions, Engineering, Higher Education, K-12, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
Registration is now open for the 17th Annual NASA Great Moonbuggy Race. The race will take place April 1-3, 2010, in Huntsville, Ala., at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. High school and college students are required to design a vehicle that addresses a series of engineering problems similar to those faced by the original lunar-roving vehicle team. Each school may enter up to two teams. Entries must be received by Feb. 1, 2010.
Learn more about this exciting competition at http://moonbuggy.msfc.nasa.gov/index.html
Filed under: Aeronautics, Competitions, Engineering, Higher Education, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
The Fundamental Aeronautics Program invites undergraduate and graduate students to research and design a civilian amphibious tiltrotor vehicle. The vehicle must be able to take off and land on water or land; carry up to fifty passengers; cruise at 300 knots; and cover 800 nautical miles. Participants must be enrolled in an accredited college or university. International students may participate but are not eligible for certain prizes. A notice of intent is requested by Jan. 15, 2010. Final papers are due May 3, 2010.
Participants will submit a conceptual design for an amphibious tiltrotor that meets or exceeds the design goals and capabilities described on the official context website. Participants will also describe the technical issues associated with water landings and take-offs and describe the design trade-offs considered to accommodate marinization. Format and content guidelines are available on the website.
To review the contest details and submission guidelines, please visit http://aero.larc.nasa.gov/competitions_univ.htm
Filed under: Competitions, Contest, Higher Education, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
Applications are currently being accepted for the 2010 CanSat Competition.
This annual competition is open to university and college students from the United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe. Teams of three to 10 students must design and build a space-type system called a CanSat. Each CanSat is the size of a soda can and must be built according to the specifications released by the competition organizing committee. Participants are involved in the end-to-end life cycle of a complex engineering project, from conceptual design, through integration and test, actual operation of the system, and the conclusion with a post-mission summary and debriefing.
All teams entering the CanSat competition are required to have a faculty adviser. The faculty adviser will oversee and be responsible for the conduct of the team at all times during the competition and is strongly encouraged to accompany the team to the competition.
Applications are due Nov. 30, 2009.
For more information about the competition and to download the application, visit http://www.cansatcompetition.com/
NASA, in conjunction with TopCoder Inc. and researchers from Harvard Business School and London Business School, has kicked off an experimental programming competition. The competition is aimed at developing algorithms that optimize medical kits for long-duration human space exploration.
Competitors will develop algorithms to help NASA’s flight surgeons make decisions involved with optimizing the contents of the medical supplies kit that may one day be carried on board long-term space missions. Submissions will be compared with the results of an existing computer model that has simulated the expected medical occurrences and outcomes for various mission scenarios.
Registration for the event closes on Oct. 28, 2009. The online competition runs Nov. 4-14, 2009. The competition is open to all TopCoder members but will be limited to 480 members. More than $24,000 in cash and prizes is at stake.
For full registration information and rules, visit http://www.topcoder.com/nasacontest
TopCoder is a competitive software development community with more than 220,000 developers representing more than 200 countries that offers competition-based development using a unique model of open innovation.
Filed under: Competitions, Cool Science, Educational Materials, Educator Kit, Engineering, K-12, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
NASA is inviting students in grades 5-8 to participate in the Waste Limitation Management and Recycling Design Challenge. The challenge uses real-world scenarios that meet science and mathematics content standards. Students can participate in a formal, informal or home-school setting.
Teams of up to six students will design a water recycling system for the unique environment of the moon. Teams will then test their system on a simulated wastewater stream. Proposals and results are due Feb. 1, 2010.
The winning teams will be announced in May 2010. The top three teams will receive awards. The first place team will receive an expense-paid trip to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During the winning team’s visit to Kennedy, students will gain firsthand knowledge about NASA’s missions, receive behind-the-scenes tours of NASA’s launch facilities, and learn about future aerospace and engineering careers.
For more information and contest rules, please visit http://wlmr.nasa.gov/
On Oct. 28, 2009, Dr. Jay Garland will be hosting a webcast tutorial for educators on the WLMR design challenge from 4-5 pm EDT. The presentation will provide an overview of the contest objectives and schedule, demonstrate methods students will use to create and analyze the wastewater, and answer questions from the audience. The webcast can be accessed at http://dln.nasa.gov
Also available online is the Waste Limitation Management and Recycling Design Challenge Educator Guide. This guide is a starting point for middle school students to research and answer the challenging questions of how to maintain human habitations on the moon and other planets in the solar system. The guide focuses specifically on the need for water recycling. The guide includes background information on topics relating to the moon, Earth’s water cycle and water recycling. Several basic classroom activities on water recycling are also included.
The guide is available for downloading at http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/topnav/materials/listbytype/WLMR_Guide.html
Filed under: Competitions, Engineering, Higher Education, NASA, Research, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
NASA and the National Institute of Aerospace announce the 2010 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts Academic Linkage Competition. RASC-AL is a design project competition aimed at university-level engineering students.
The RASC-AL contest challenges participants to design projects based on real NASA projects. These design projects could then potentially be implemented by NASA.
Student teams must submit an abstract for their proposed project by Feb. 5, 2010. Their work must be based on one of four themes: lunar outpost to settlement, technology-enabled human Mars mission, bringing the world along with participatory exploration, and common lunar sortie / near-Earth object mission design. The RASC-AL Steering Committee of NASA and industry experts will evaluate the proposals and select as many as ten undergraduate and five graduate teams to compete against each other at a forum in June 2010 in Florida.
The RASC-AL Program is open to full-time undergraduate or graduate students majoring in engineering or science at an accredited university. University design teams must include one faculty or industry advisor with a university affiliation and two or more undergraduate or graduate students. A group of universities may also work in collaboration on a design project entry. Multidisciplinary teams are encouraged.
For more information about this competition, visit http://www.nianet.org/rascal/index.html
Filed under: Aeronautics, Competitions, Contest, Higher Education, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) was developed by the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) specifically to create a constellation of new capabilities, supporting technologies and foundational research that enables sustained and affordable human and robotic exploration. This competition is one of many projects designed to contribute to our Nation’s efforts in achieving excellence in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.
Join NASA’s mission to bring us to the moon, Mars and beyond by submitting a research paper on one of the four ESMD topics listed below. Your research may be used as the solution to current NASA challenges.
Paper Topics Include:
-Ground Operations – Spacecraft Landing and Recovery Architecture: Historical Approaches and Ideas for the Future
-Lunar and Planetary Surface Systems – Synergistic degradation effects of materials exposed to radiation, micrometeors, thermal sinks and lunar dust
-Propulsion – Loading of Cryogenic Propellant in Space Launch Vehicle
-Spacecraft – Determination of the Optimum Internal Cockpit Layout
Four 1st place prizes of $3500 cash scholarships (one for each research topic) and VIP seating to an upcoming Space Shuttle launch
The deadline for submitting the research paper is midnight EST January 25, 2010. For complete information regarding the rules and guidelines visit our website at http://education.ksc.nasa.gov/esmdspacegrant/ResearchPaper.htm
Filed under: Aeronautics, Competitions, Contest, K-12, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities
After serving 15 galactic months on board the International Space Station (ISS), Disney Parks and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) today announced they are celebrating Buzz Lightyear’s historic space journey with a Mission Patch Design Challenge for children 6-12 years of age in the 50 United States and District of Columbia at http://www.DisneyParks.com/Buzz. The 12-inch action figure returned to Earth in September aboard NASA space shuttle Discovery mission STS-128.
For nearly 40 years, NASA astronauts have designed patches to symbolize their individual space missions and flight accomplishments. Carrying on this tradition, Disney Parks and NASA have launched a search for the most creative mission patch design to honor Buzz Lightyear as America’s first and longest serving space ranger.
Beginning Oct. 2, through Nov. 6, children and parents can go online and download materials to design a custom Buzz mission patch. Kids can choose design templates and art work inspired by previous NASA badges as well as NASA and Disney Parks creative elements and other fun add-ons. Along with their patch, children must also submit a brief essay (up to 100 words) discussing the inspiration for their design. The winner, parent and two guests will receive a three day, two night vacation to Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. as well as a VIP tour of the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The Mission Patch Design Challenge commemorates Buzz Lightyear’s achievement and builds on NASA’s educational goals of encouraging students to pursue studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects. As part of the Buzz Lightyear Mission Patch Design Challenge, children will get the opportunity to learn about the requirements of space flight and the science surrounding NASA programs, helping to create a strong understanding about the importance of space exploration.
“Now that Buzz Lightyear is back home, we are truly excited for the next phase – designing a real NASA mission patch to recognize his historic accomplishment,” said Disney’s Duncan Wardle, Vice President, Disney Destinations. “Disney Parks and NASA feel it’s only fitting that Buzz’s biggest and true fans are given the opportunity to design a one-of-a-kind mission patch to celebrate his dream-come-true. We have no doubt the submissions will be unique and creative – if anything, a very hard decision to make!”
How to Enter :
Children and parents can visit www.DisneyParks.com/Buzz for official Mission Patch Design Challenge rules, templates, examples of elements required for each design as well as judging criteria. Entrants shall:
– Download and print mission patch templates (with the help of parents).
– Using various elements, design a Mission Patch to commemorate Buzz Lightyear’s time in space aboard the ISS.
– Write a brief description of the design (up to 100 words).
– Submit artwork and design description (with the help of parents).
– Entries may be submitted via e-mail or mail to specific address.
Entries will be judged based on originality, creative execution, appropriateness of theme and clarity of expression of idea. For additional information on the Disney Parks and NASA Mission Patch Design Challenge or to enter, guests may visit http://www.DisneyParks.com/Buzz
Filed under: Aeronautics, Competitions, K-12, NASA, STEM, Science, Student Opportunities | Tags: Rocketry
Registration is open for the Team America Rocketry Challenge 2010, a national model rocket competition for U.S. students in grades 7 through 12. Thousands of students compete each year in the Team America Rocketry Challenge, the world’s largest model rocket contest.
Teams of three to 10 students are challenged to design, build and fly a model rocket that will climb to 825 feet with a raw egg payload and stay aloft for 40 to 45 seconds. The payload must then return to earth unbroken. Cash prizes are awarded to the top finishers. NASA invites top teams to participate in their Student Launch Initiative, an advanced rocketry program.
Participation is limited to the first 750 teams who register by Nov. 30, 2009. For more information, visit http://www.rocketcontest.org/
