NASA Engineering Design Challenge

[dporter]

This challenge is just in the intial stages, but I wanted to let everyone know about it so that people can start thinking about it. I think there could be some interesting robotic tie-ins.

NASA has developed a design challenge as part of astronaut Barbara Morgan's first flight. This mission, STS-118 will be the first mission flown by an Educator Astronaut. As part of the mission, and as part of the plans for living on the moon, the design challenge will be based on building growth chambers for plants. Grades K-12 can participate in the design and testing of growth chambers and groups that sign-up can recieve seeds that will have flown in space on STS-118. The seeds will be used to test the growth chambers.

Rules, resources, and career links, will be provided at a NASA Design Challenge web page as plans come together. To sign up for NASA Express (a news letter) that will provide information about the challenge, go to http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/STS-118_index.html

I will be involved in this project, so as I get more details I will post them here. If you have any questions just let me know. And feel free to pass on this information to teachers, students, and others that might enjoy this project.

[Kevin Berry]

and, interestingly enough, I'm involved in the flight planning down at KSC for this flight. If anyone needs any "how to design things to fly on the Shuttle" information I might be able to hook them up.

Small world

[dporter]

If things work out I may be down there for the launch of STS 118.

With all that goes on, I'm sure you will be busy, but I'll let you know if I get an invitation.

KSC is an amazing place. I had the opportunity to tour the area and see shuttle tiles being replaced and the size and complexity of the shuttles are hard to imagine. People sometimes knock the shuttles for just being cargo carriers, but they are probably the most complex engineering project ever made. A lot of credit goes to the thousands of people that keep them flying.

[Kevin Berry]

You come I'll hook up with you. No problem. By the time of launch, its in the hands of the REAL workers, not a cubicle warrior like me!

Happens I know where all the bodies are buried in the Payloads world, let me know who you wind up working with down here and I'll sit on their desk and kibbitz!

[dporter]

Sounds great! I''ll probably be there with the NASA education people. Hope it works out.

Thanks

Doug