NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration

  1. Content with the tag: “education

  2. Education and Public Outreach Activities

    ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 10, 2, 4, 6, 7

    “Are We Alone?” weekly science radio show

    ROADMAP OBJECTIVES:
  3. Students Monitor Hydrothermal Features in Lassen Volcanic National Park


    The Lassen Astrobiology Student Internship Program, a collaboration between NAI’s Ames team, Lassen Volcanic National Park, and Red Bluff High School, will wrap up its first year of activity in August. Nine high school students and their chemistry teacher, with training from NAI scientists and under the supervision of a park ranger, have made eight field trips to various sites within the park throughout the course of the school year. They monitored field sites and made seasonal measurements of temperature, pH, and water chemistry of the hydrothermal features. PBS station KNPB, Reno, NV,...

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  4. Escuela International de Astrobiología


    The Josep Comas i Solà International Astrobiology Summer School, held annually in Santander, Spain, has become a tradition in the astrobiology community, as this summer marked its seventh year. The week-long program for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows provides lectures from international experts, round-table discussions, student projects, night-sky observations, and a half-day field trip to a nearby site of astrobiological interest.

    This summer’s program, held from 22-26 June, was devoted to an understanding of the characteristics and diversity of organisms that inhabit Earth’s extreme environments and the implications for the habitability of environments beyond Earth. About...

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  5. Summer Camp: The Quest for Life


    This summer, NAI’s new team at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) played a major role in hosting the 2009 ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp. The camp is a free, academic program of The Harris Foundation, named for Bernard A. Harris, MD, an accomplished NASA astronaut, physician and entrepreneur, and the first African American to walk in space.

    The theme of this year’s camp, held from June 14-26th, was The Quest for Life, and 50 middle school students participated. During the two exciting weeks, students went on several field trips to The Albany Pine Bush,...

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  6. Astrobiology, To the Best of Our Knowledge


    Today on WAMC’s radio program To The Best Of Our Knowledge, NAI Principal Investigator Doug Whittet talks about astrobiology, and the ongoing research and education activities of his New York Center for Astrobiology (NYCA), seated at RPI. This interview sets up future programs featuring staff scientists and guest lecturers at the NYCA.

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  7. Expanding Horizons in Montana


    “Microbial Bingo” was the name of the game in a recent outreach event for more than 50 junior high-aged girls from across Montana. The girls came to Montana State University’s astrobiology laboratories this Spring for “That’s Hot! Investigating the Edge of Life” as part of the national program called Expanding Your Horizons. The girls learned about MSU’s research in Yellowstone National Park, and how astrobiology might give us new insights into the early earth as well as life on other planets. The girls then became scientists themselves, using observational data in a race to fill...

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  8. Astrobiology Night at the Ballpark


    This past weekend, minor-league baseball fans in Madison, Wisconsin got treated to an out of this world experience at the local Madison Mallards game. NAI’s Wisconsin Astrobiology Research Center (WARC) sponsored ‘Astrobiology Night’ at the ballpark, and delivered a fun and educational experience for the 6250 fans in attendance.

    A rover delivered the ball to WARC researcher Eric Roden who threw out the first pitch, but that was just the beginning of the festivities. Kids and families played with extremophile trading cards and special frisbees with an astrobiology timeline printed on them. ...

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  9. NASA's 21st Annual Planetary Science Summer School


    NASA is accepting applications from science and engineering post-docs, recent PhDs, and doctoral students for its 21st Annual Planetary Science Summer School, which will hold two separate sessions this summer (20-24 July and 3-7 August 2009) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Applications are due 1 May 2009.

    During the program, student teams will carry out the equivalent of an early mission concept study, prepare a proposal authorization review presentation, present it to a review board, and receive feedback. At the end of the week, students will have a clearer understanding of the life cycle...

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  10. Life in Extreme Environments Educator Conference


    The Life in Extreme Environments Educator Conference, hosted by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Education Office, was held on January 24-25, 2009 in JPL’s von Kármán auditorium. E/PO Leads from NAI’s teams at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, JPL-Titan, and JPL-Icy Worlds participated in producing the event. Eighty-one educators attended.

    The program included an introduction to astrobiology, as well as more detailed presentations outlining astrobiology research into extrasolar planet habitability, pre-biotic chemistry, spectral “bio”signatures, and planetary protection. NAI educational materials were distributed.

    The conference also served as a platform from which to test a remote...

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  11. Life in Extreme Environments Educator Conference


    When January 24, 2009 (Sat) ~ January 25, 2009 (Sun)
    Where Pasadena, CA

    On January 24-25th, the NAI Teams at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA will host the Life in Extreme Environments Educator Conference for teachers and other educators. Join NASA astrobiologists, planetary scientists, and astronomers for a presentation on the latest information on our expanding understanding of the abodes of life on our planet and the prospects for the development of life elsewhere in our solar system and much farther beyond. Please register by January 16th.

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  12. Astrobiology Curriculum Pilot Kicks-Off Maine STEM Initiative


    The pilot-test of a NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI)-supported curriculum entitled Astrobiology: An Integrated Science Approach helped kick-off the State of Maine’s new Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Initiative. This initiative was the subject of a press conference given this week by Maine’s Governor, The Honorable John E. Baldacci.

    The curriculum was developed with significant input from the NAI Team at NASA Ames Research Center led by Dave Des Marais, who spoke at the press conference. Much of the team’s research in astrobiology is captured in the curriculum.

    Providing ninth grade students an...

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  13. New Classroom Materials from the NAI: Exploring Deep Subsurface Life


    EDSL Workbook Cover

    Created by NAI’s IPTAI Team, the Exploring Deep Subsurface Life Workbook and DVD teaching materials highlight research sites at Harmony Gold Mine in South Africa, and Lupin Gold Mine and High Lake Mine in Nunavut Territory, Canada. The workbook¹s imagery invites the audience into the mine sites, and the lessons correspond to the astrobiology research carried out in the deep subsurface. The video and animation materials support and compliment the lessons in the workbook and introduce the scientists.

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