Thursday, August 1, 2024

NASA EXPRESS -- Your STEM Connection for Aug. 1, 2024

Surprisingly STEM: Memory Metal Engineer

In the latest Surprisingly STEM episode, shape memory metal engineer Othmane Benafan irons out the details of how he creates alloys that can bend, stretch, and twist when heat is applied. Learn how this technology is turning up the heat on what’s possible for NASA missions.


Do you want to give working with shape memory alloys a try? Check out this hands-on activity.

Coming Up Later This Month

Mark your calendar to make timely STEM connections with these upcoming events!


Sunday, Aug. 11 - Monday, Aug. 12: Spot shooting stars during the Perseid Meteor Shower.


No Earlier Than Mid-August: Be a virtual guest and watch Crew-9 launch to the International Space Station.


Monday, Aug. 19: Celebrate National Aviation Day with a paper airplane challenge.


Wednesday, Aug. 21: Watch astronauts on the International Space Station answer student questions during a live Q&A session.


Friday, Aug. 23: Learn about Spring 2025 NASA internship opportunities and submit your application.

Are You Up for a Challenge?

2025 NASA Lunabotics Challenge

Audience: Higher education students in the U.S.

Application Deadline: Sept. 12

Contact: ksc-lunabotics@mail.nasa.gov

 

Lunabotics is a systems engineering design challenge that tasks student teams with designing and building an autonomous or telerobotic robot that is able to traverse a simulated Lunar surface and complete assigned construction tasks. Teams from colleges, universities, and technical and vocational schools are eligible to participate.

 

Selected teams will be invited to put their robots to the test at a culminating event at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in May 2025.

 

Click here for more information and the 2025 Lunabotics challenge timeline.

2025 NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge

Audience: Educators and students in grades 6-12 and higher education

Proposal Deadline: Sept. 19

Contact: HERC@mail.nasa.gov

 

NASA’s Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC) is accepting proposals for its 2025 competition that will be held April 11-12, 2025, in Huntsville, Alabama.

 

New for 2025, HERC will feature a remote-controlled rover division open to middle school, high school, and university student teams. These teams will construct rovers that will traverse challenging terrains, and specialty tools for completing simulated Artemis mission tasks.

 

In the human-powered rover division, teams of high school and university students are challenged to design, build, test, and compete with human-powered rovers capable of traversing challenging terrains that simulate lunar and Martian surfaces.

 

Click here to access the 2025 HERC Handbook for full competition details.

More Resources to Explore

School's Out! Recharge and Refresh With Earthrise Newsletter

 

This month, the Earthrise team rolled together new resources for a fun summer while highlighting content you may not have had time to explore during the school year.


Enjoy data-rich resources for use in your classroom and discover all that the Earthrise partners have to offer through their STEM resource collections.

Joint Polar Satellite System STEM Activity: Make a Windsock

 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA’s Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) satellites study Earth's processes that cause the weather, including temperature, air pressure, humidity, clouds, and wind.


In this activity for elementary grades, learn about wind and weather while crafting your own windsock.

Click here to find even more NASA STEM activities and resources.

Opportunities With Our Partners

2024 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Data Challenge

Submission Deadline: Thursday, Aug. 22

Lunar and Planetary Institute: 2024 Culturally Inclusive Planetary Engagement Workshop

Application Deadline:

Saturday, Aug. 31

NOAA SciJinks: Weather Coloring Pages

Available Now

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

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. https://science.nasa.gov/learners/wavelength

Check out the ‘Explore NASA Science’ website! Science starts with questions, leading to discoveries. Visit science.nasa.gov. To view the site in Spanish, visit ciencia.nasa.gov.
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NASA Kids’ Club: https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub

Scientist Pankaj

Day in Review: NASA’s EMIT Will Explore Diverse Science Questions on Extended Mission

The imaging spectrometer measures the colors of light reflected from Earth's surface to study fields such as agriculture ...  Mis...