OSGC Educational Resources Blog

(NASA Press Release)

NASA invites people of all ages to join the lunar exploration journey with an opportunity to send their names to the moon aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, spacecraft.

The Send Your Name to the Moon Web site enables everyone to participate in the lunar adventure and place their names in orbit around the moon for years to come. Participants can submit their information at http://www.nasa.gov/lro , print a certificate and have their name entered into a database. The database will be placed on a microchip that will be integrated onto the spacecraft. The deadline for submitting names is June 27, 2008.

“Everyone who sends their name to the moon, like I’m doing, becomes part of the next wave of lunar explorers,” said Cathy Peddie, deputy project manager for LRO at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. “The LRO mission is the first step in NASA’s plans to return humans to the moon by 2020, and your name can reach there first. How cool is that?”

The orbiter, comprised of six instruments and one technology demonstration, will provide the most comprehensive data set ever returned from the moon. The mission will focus on the selection of safe landing sites and identification of lunar resources. It also will study how the lunar radiation environment could affect humans.

LRO will also create a comprehensive atlas of the moon’s features and resources that will be needed as NASA designs and builds a planned lunar outpost. The mission will support future human exploration while providing a foundation for upcoming science missions. LRO is scheduled for launch in late 2008.

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is being built at Goddard. The mission also will be managed at the center for NASA’s Explorations Systems Mission Directorate in Washington.

Send Your Name to the Moon is a collaborative effort among NASA, the Planetary Society in Pasadena, Calif., and the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md.

To send your name to the moon, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/lro

Follow your curiosity this summer with Saturday Academy!
Contact: Cori Hall, 541-737-1822

Openings are available in all summer OSU Saturday Academy classes and camps. Design your own engineering project! Experiment with science in research labs! Explore the coastline and use real research techniques! Create a sculpture for DaVinci Days! Adventure in to the world of nanotechnology! Chart your future as an engineer! Discover all of these things and more with Saturday Academy this summer. Classes are for 5th – 12th grade students and range from 2 day workshops to full week camps, all held on the OSU campus.

More information about courses, topics, dates and registration can be found online at http://academy.engr.oregonstate.edu , or by calling (541) 737-1822.

Saturday Academy is a non-profit cooperative hosted by the College of Engineering and College of Science at Oregon State University, and working with local businesses and professionals. Fees are charged for classes, but tuition assistance is available. Students from Albany and Mill City schools pay half the regular fees due to school district support and grant funds.

 The FIRST Robotics Championship is the final and largest event of the 2008 Competition. The 2008 Championship is at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA on April 17-19. This event is open to the public and free of charge, as are all FIRST Robotics Competitions.

If you are unable to attend the live event, you can still watch the matches on our live webcast courtesy of NASA TV! Check the link below for schedules, teams, match results, and a link to the webcast.
http://www.usfirst.org/community/frc/content.aspx?id=432&menu_id=80

Yuri Gagarin embarked on the historic first manned space flight on 12 April 1961. Twenty years later on 12 April 1981, the US launched the first space shuttle flight. Every year on April 12, people around the world celebrate the first man in space and the first space shuttle flight. The celebration is called Yuri’s Night. Last year there were over 90 events or parties held in over 30 countries worldwide - and this year may be even bigger. The range of events is as diverse as the people who hold them – even the residents of the International Space Station have been known to join in the fun!

You can find an event near you or plan to host your own gathering at the official Yuri’s Night website: http://www.yurisnight.net/2008/

Astrobiology Techniques: A research-based laboratory course for Pre-Service and In-Service Science Teachers

Offered by: Portland State University, Department of Geology July 28 – August 1, 2008

Details:
G410/510, Astrobiology Yellowstone Techniques - 2 credits
Lab Fee: $50 – covers chemicals and electron microscope beam time
Undergraduate Tuition Fees: $375 for 2 credits
Graduate Tuition Fees: $701 for 2 credits

Course Description:
The field of astrobiology focuses on the search for early life on Earth and the possibility of life on other planets. The Cady Research Group ( http://cadylab.pdx.edu/ ) investigates how life leaves an imprint on the rock record. This course will focus on laboratory techniques used to detect fossil signatures left by microorganisms. Specifically, we will examine samples acquired from Yellowstone National Park using the optical light microscope (OLM) and the scanning electron microscope (SEM). Lectures will cover fundamental concepts in astrobiology and microscopy. Laboratory projects will focus on samples gathered during the Yellowstone field trip, and will give students hands-on experience in OLM and SEM techniques. Class discussions will also consider methods to incorporate Astrobiology concepts and laboratory techniques into K-12 science curriculum. The final assignments, due Aug 8, are to write a short research report and draft a K-12 astrobiology lab. Contact Professor Sherry Cady - (503)725-3377, cadys@pdx.edu and/or Dr. Rick Hugo - (503)725-3356, hugo@pdx.edu for more information.

Astrobiology in Yellowstone National Park: A research experience for
Pre-Service and In-Service Science Teachers

Offered by: Portland State University, Department of Geology on July 8-15, 2008

Details:
G410/510, Astrobiology in Yellowstone 2 or 4 credits (graduate or undergraduate)
Trip Dates: July 8-15, 2008 Official course dates: July 7-25, 2008
Trip Fee: $725 – covers transportation to Yellowstone, meals and camping fees (tuition fees extra)
Undergraduate Tuition Fees: $375 for 2 credits or $602 for 4 credits
Graduate Tuition Fees: $701 for 2 credits or $1254 for 4 credits

Course Description: The field of astrobiology focuses on the search for early life on Earth and the possibility of life on other planets.  The Cady Research Group ( http://cadylab.pdx.edu/ ) investigates how life leaves an imprint on the rock record. In this course, students will be exposed to a variety of field and microscopy techniques used to detect signatures left by microorganisms.  We will travel to hot springs in Yellowstone National Park to study the formation of microbial fossils in hot spring environments.  Participants will conduct original research projects related to current research questions posed by NASA with regard to Mars exploration.  We will also discuss methods to incorporate this multidisciplinary field into K-12 science curriculum.  Assignments, due after returning from the field, are to write a short field research report and draft a K-12 lab or field activity.  The 4-credit version will also require you to prepare a complete curriculum module to share with others.  All students must be prepared to hike 5-6 miles/day on moderate trails, carrying light to moderate loads.

Contact Professor Sherry Cady - (503) 725-3377, cadys@pdx.edu and/or Dr. Rick Hugo - (503)725-3356, hugo@pdx.edu for more information.

Camp:TECH! is geared toward students ages 10-15 and offers web design, programming, digital photography, Flash, game design, digital music production, and video production courses at both our day and overnight camps. Students from all over the Northwest take part in our overnight camps and have a blast!

Please Note: OETC is changing the location of the overnight camps this summer. Day camp courses will again be held at the Oregon Graduate Institute (OGI) in Hillsboro Oregon and also in conjunction with the overnight camp courses at our new location at Corban College in Salem Oregon.

The new 2008 Camp:TECH! web site is now up and running so check out the camp courses and dates today at http://camp.oetc.org

In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy, OMSI’s Kendall Planetarium is sponsoring an astronomy photo contest. Winning astronomy photos will be published in OMSI’s 2009 Kendall Planetarium astronomy calendar.

Eligibility: The OMSI Planetarium Astronomy Photo Contest is open to amateur photographers of any age.

Photo Criteria: All entries must be taken of a celestial event. Photographs that depict anything not adhering to current celestial events, or which are inappropriate, indecent, or obscene, as determined by OMSI, will be disqualified. All photographs must be original images taken by the entrant and cannot have been previously published.

Contest deadline: March 31 at 5:00 p.m
Complete contest details and entry form available at http://www.omsi.edu/misc/astrocontest/

POLAR-PALOOZA is a national tour featuring public presentations entitled “Stories From a Changing Planet.” These tales of adventure and science are told by a charismatic “cast” of characters, using HD video and authentic props — such as a piece of ice core 2,000 years old, or a caribou parka — to bring polar research to life. Each stop on the tour will include special programs for schools, workshops for K-12 educators and museum volunteers, briefings for local news media and business leaders, and camp-ins for Girl Scouts and Boys and Girls Clubs.

March 13-14, 2008 — Washington, D.C.
April 17-19, 2008 — Salt Lake City, Utah: Utah Museum of Natural History
April 21-22, 2008 — Norman, Okla.: Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History
May 4-6, 2008 — Anchorage, Alaska: Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center
May 8-10, 2008 — Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Museum of the North
May 24-25, 2008 — Raleigh, N.C.: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Sept. 12-13, 2008 — Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Sept. 19-20, 2008 — Chicago, Ill. : Chicago Museum of Science and Industry and the Adler Planetarium
Oct. 22-24, 2008 — Richmond, Va. : Science Museum of Virginia
Oct. 27-29, 2008 — St. Louis, Mo. : St. Louis Science Center
Nov. 11-12, 2008 — Boise, Idaho: Discovery Center of Idaho
Nov. 14-15, 2008 — Denver, Colo. : Denver Museum of Nature and Science

For more information about the Polar-Palooza events, visit http://passporttoknowledge.com/polar-palooza/pp04.php

The Interdisciplinary National Science Project Incorporating Research and Education Experience, or INSPIRE, is a multi-tiered project for students and their parents or legal guardians. Participating students must be in grades 9-12 or in their freshman year of college.

INSPIRE provides grade-appropriate NASA-related resources and experiences to encourage and reinforce students’ aspirations to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, education and careers. The project also offers resources and information for parents to help them better champion their student’s goals. INSPIRE provides participants a rich online community, as well as opportunities to compete to participate in NASA/STEM Experiences.

INSPIRE participants will be matched to one of the 10 NASA facilities, based on the participant’s place of residence and the NASA facility’s Area of Service.

Applications are due March 15, 2008. For more information about this opportunity, visit http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/postsecondary/programs/INSPIRE_Project.html.