A team of five Indigenous students from the University of Waterloo participated in the First Nations Launch, an annual high-power rocket competition sponsored by NASA’s Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium (WSGC), designed to provide a unique aerospace learning experience.

It was the team’s first time taking part in the competition which involved designing, building and launching a high-powered model rocket carrying cargo to an apogee of 2000 feet. Months of hard work and invaluable support culminated in an epic — and windy — weekend in Kenosha, Wisconsin that everyone agrees, was a blast.

“We didn’t know what to expect going in,” says Matthieu Lavallee, a second-year chemical engineering student and Algonquin Anishinaabe member of the Wolf Lake First Nation in Québec.

“Each step was a massive learning curve which was great. There were lots of technical parameters we had to meet such as payload size and deployment timing, we also had some testing challenges as it isn’t possible to launch a high-powered rocket in Canada without proper authorization. But we had tons of support and nothing felt impossible.”

Read the full article on UWaterloo.ca

Author Credit: Charlotte Danby

Image Credit: University of Waterloo

Original Post Date: June 24, 2024

The sun barely peeks over the horizon as a suitcase-like transport box exits Steward Observatory, home to the University of Arizona Department of Astronomy. Inside, held snugly in place by foam, is precious cargo: CatSat, the university’s first satellite built entirely by students.

After loading it into the back of the car, Shae Henley and Walter Rahmer, both engineering students at UArizona, stretch one last time in preparation for the 660-mile trip from Tucson to Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Their mission: Deliver the satellite and fit it inside a Firefly rocket that will launch into low-Earth orbit as early as July 1. If everything goes according to plan, CatSat will orbit around Earth every 95 minutes, gathering data about space weather while using an inflatable antenna from FreeFall Aerospace and a state-of-the-art radio from Rincon Research Corporation.

CatSat is a small satellite, also known as a CubeSat. The project kickoff was in 2016. For the past several years, students suited up in lab coats, hairnets and masks to meticulously wire up the satellite inside a clean room in the university’s Drake Building. Henley and Rahmer were part of the CatSat integration team, which also included team leads Hilly Paige and Del Spangler, both UArizona alumni, and engineering student Sarah Li.

Read the full story on News.Arizona.edu

Author Credit: Penny Sophia Duran, NASA Space Grant Science Writing Intern

Image Credit: Aman Chandra/FreeFall Aerospace

Original Post Date: June 29, 2024

NASA and the National Space Grant Foundation selected four university teams to develop advanced and innovative design ideas that will help solve Artemis mission challenges. The selections are part of the 2023-2024 Moon to Mars eXploration Systems and Habitation (M2M X-Hab) Academic Innovation Challenge sponsored by NASA’s Artemis Campaign Development Division.

The 2023-2024 M2M X-Hab Academic Innovation Challenge is an opportunity for NASA to build strategic partnerships with universities and tap into the ingenuity of the future Artemis Generation workforce. The challenge provides STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) students interested in aerospace careers with hands-on development and research experience, while strengthening NASA capability for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Past student participants have gone on to careers in the aerospace industry, including at NASA.

Universities in support of the M2M X-Hab 2023-2024 Academic Innovation Challenge will advance science and technology innovations for Artemis missions with the following projects:

Standardized Habitat Rack Design and Testing
University of Maryland Department of Aerospace Engineering and Space Systems Laboratory (SSL)

In this work students will develop, model, and test innovative concepts for standardized modular stowage and equipment racks in planetary surface habitats under lunar and Mars gravity conditions. This will include a survey of rack and stowage on the International Space Station and any other habitats with available information.  This information will inform the design of one or more modular habitat elements. Issues such as size and mass will be examined via tests of human manipulation in the underwater environment at both lunar and Mars gravity loadings, including rack transfer through simulated docking hatches between berthed pressurized modules. This will lead to the design and prototyping of a standardized modular rack element, which will be used to assess access and portability with both humans and robotic systems.

Design of Payload Racks to Support Future Habitation Platforms and Exploration Missions
University of Michigan Bioastronautics and Life Support Systems (BLiSS)

The project aims to ideate modifications to heritage rack designs and scale them to lunar and Martian habitats. The final deliverables of this project include high-fidelity CAD renderings in the intended environment of the proposed rack design, a system prototype to test both operations and human factors, and a final written report of the design process. The notional concept for our prototype payload rack describes a small-scale system that services a single payload while adapting to habitat architecture, human interfacing, and further scalability to lunar and Martian habitat environments. More in-depth analysis of integration methods will be conducted using multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques and formal trade studies in order to maximize the system’s performance and ergonomics.

Crew Mobility Modalities inside Moon/Mars Habitats
Auburn University Mechanical Engineering

Whether they are seen on the side of a stucco wall or crawling up a window, geckos are a ubiquitous companion throughout the human world.  The use of artificial gecko hands and feet for an astronaut or “synthetic setae” is both an attractive solution for Crew Mobility Modalities inside Moon/Mars Habitats and one fraught with complexities; the implementation of these complex geometries is not trivial. The major hurdle is developing adhesive high surface area features that allow for repeated use and resists damage. A deep understanding of the tribological properties of the surfaces and interface, i. e. coefficient of friction, surface roughness, contact mechanics and surface adhesion will be critical to uncovering effective methods for crew mobility.  A potential solution is to develop a smart surface, which can be tuned to change its properties through direct human control. Magnetorheological elastomers, silicone embedded with soft magnetic particles, can be used as the adhering surface of the habitat mobility solution, as small magnetic fields applied to material can cause dramatic changes in material stiffness and surface roughness. This material has the potential to be used as either part of the astronaut’s suit, as part of a target pad on a surface, or as a mobility projectile as it can be molded and 3D printed. Care must be taken in the design of material and geometry to overcome the unique problem associated with extraterrestrial use. Additionally, a liquid operated baffle system could be 3D printed into the design to allow for channels to expand and change the dimensions of the mobility apparatus. Similar devices have been developed with air as the medium.

Image Credit: NASA

Nine Henderson State University students were awarded funding this summer from the Arkansas Space Grant Consortium to support their projects and research.

Patrick Porch of Malvern, Michael Kempson of Bald Knob, and Chance Young of Cabot received a $15,000 Student Intensive Training Grant which provides a stipend for each student and funding for materials.

They are working on a high-powered rocketry project and pursuing their required certifications as they seek to compete in a national rocketry competition.

Kayce Krantz of Gurdon, who is also working on a rocketry project, received a STEM grant with a stipend intended to provide opportunities for underrepresented groups in the sciences.

Read the full article on Arkadelphian.com

Author Credit: Arkadelphian.com

Image Credit: Henderson State University

Original Post Date: June 26, 2024

FAIRMONT, W.Va (WDTV) – Fairmont State University has received a grant from the NASA WV Space Grant Consortium to support STEM education at the university.

FSU’s Department of Natural Sciences has received the $5,000 grant from the Professional Development in STEM grant program.

The project, Re-Discovering CATS Cadre Experts, aims to invite 16 retired science teachers from the Coordinated and Thematic Science Program to present sessions at the West Virginia Science Teacher Association conference. Sessions in chemistry, physics, biology, earth and space science and elementary science will be presented to a new generation of West Virginia science teachers, organizers said.

The grant will pay for registration and boarding fees for the presenters at the conference.

Read the full article on wdtv.com.

Author Credit: WDTV News Staff

Image Credit: WDTV

Story Original Post Date: June 18, 2024

It’s all systems go for the College of the Canyons Aerospace and Science Team, which has received a $136,000 grant from NASA to support its High-Altitude Student Platform, RockOn and RockSat-X suborbital rocket programs.

To date, COC is the only community college that has successfully participated in High-Altitude Student Platform eight years in a row, as well as four RockSatX missions and two RockOn missions.

“We are so excited to have been granted this generous award from NASA,” said Teresa Ciardi, who teaches physical science and astronomy at the college and is the Aerospace and Science Team’s faculty advisor. “Securing consistent funding every year has been a longstanding obstacle for our team. This grant will greatly alleviate the financial burden on our students who wish to participate in these competitive collegiate space missions.”

Read the full article on SCVNews.com.

Author Credit: College of the Canyons

Image Credit: College of the Canyons

Story Original Post Date: June 25, 2024

EAD, S.D. (KELO) — From Mt. Rushmore to the Corn Palace, South Dakota is known for its attractions.

But not a lot of people are aware that Lead, South Dakota is home to the nation’s underground laboratory.

The Sanford Underground Research Facility also known as SURF performs world-class science experiments everyday in the Northern Hills. SURF is the only deep underground science lab located in the United States and one of the deepest in the world.

The people who work underground include physicists, biologists, geologists and engineers.

“In a lot of these, although we’ve known they exist for a while we really don’t know how they behave and what role they play and how the universe operates and its make-up. So these are really at the forefront and really world-leading experiments that we’re performing here,” SDSTA Executive Director Mike Headley said.

Read the full story on Keloland.com.

Author Credit: Tyler Louder

Image Credit:

Original Story Post Date: 1/10/2024

The Alabama Space Grant Consortium (ASGC) has announced recipients of its scholarships and fellowships for 2024-2025. ASGC is located on the campus of The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama System.

The consortium was formed with a mission to inspire the next generation of space explorers in 1989 when NASA implemented the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. It is a voluntary association of all seven research universities in Alabama along with other community colleges, educational outreach, and industrial and government entities.

Each scholarship recipient is awarded $1,500, and each fellowship winner receives $37,000. A single asterisk by a student’s name denotes a one-year renewal of a previous scholarship or fellowship award while two asterisks indicate a two-year renewal of a previous fellowship award.

For more information on ASGC and its scholarship and fellowship opportunities, visit uah.edu/asgc.

See the full list of awardees on UAH.edu

Image Credit: ALSGC

Author Credit: Ann Marie Martin

Original Story Posted: May 10, 2024