NASA Performs Student Experiments For Whole World To See

Oct. 7, 2011

Joshua Buck
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
jbuck@nasa.gov

Stacey Tearne
Space Adventures, Vienna, Va.
202-256-7917
stearne@spaceadventures.com
RELEASE: 11-342

NASA PERFORMS STUDENT EXPERIMENTS FOR WHOLE WORLD TO SEE

WASHINGTON -- NASA announced it will provide support to Space
Adventures, Ltd. of Vienna, Va., to conduct a global competition for
students to design experiments that will be performed in space and
broadcast around the world.

NASA entered into a non-reimbursable Space Act Agreement with Space
Adventures for astronauts aboard the International Space Station 250
miles above Earth to conduct the winning experiments on the orbiting
outpost. The experiments will be performed on the U.S. portion of the
space station that has been designated as a national laboratory.

The National Laboratory Education Initiative seeks innovative ways to
use the unique microgravity environment of the space station to
promote science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)
education. The contest is designed to encourage students from 14 to
18 years old to develop STEM skills through practical experience. The
goal is to develop creative and analytical abilities by working on
teams to solve problems using the latest information technology and
tools.

"The space station really is the greatest science classroom we have,"
said Leland Melvin, associate administrator for education at NASA
Headquarters in Washington. "This contest will capitalize on
students' excitement for space exploration while engaging them in
real-life scientific research and experimentation."

NASA representatives will join a panel of internationally renowned
scientists, astronauts and teachers to judge the entries with input
from the YouTube community. Public voting will begin on Jan. 3, 2012.
Two global winners will be announced in January 2012. Both of those
experiments will fly aboard the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's
HTV-3 mission next summer. Six regional finalists will be selected in
March 2012. Regional finalists will receive get a flight on a ZERO-G
aircraft.

Contest entrants may submit up to three experiments in either life
sciences or physics. They must submit a two-minute video application
by Dec. 7 via YouTube.com. The public will be able to follow the
competition and watch the experiments via video streaming on
YouTube's website.

The station is a unique partnership between the space agencies of the
United States, Canada, Europe, Japan and Russia. The station brings
together the knowledge, technologies and resources of several nations
working toward the common goal of putting humans in space
permanently. For information about the space station, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station

After 1 p.m. EDT Monday, Oct. 10, you can find more information about
how to enter the competition or to submit a video application at:

http://www.youtube.com/SpaceLab

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