07.30.08

Angela Storey 
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. 
256-544-0034 
angela.d.storey@nasa.govRELEASE: 08-095

HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER, NASA-STYLE: 'INSPIRE' INTERNS HELP DESIGN NEXT-GENERATION SPACE FLEET, CONDUCT CUTTING-EDGE RESEARCH

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – When high school and college students around the 
country are toiling back in the classroom over those "How I Spent My 
Summer Vacation" essays in coming weeks, some will have unique 
stories to share. For instead of tanning at the beach or holding down 
traditional summer jobs, they've spent two months conducting 
cutting-edge research and working to send American astronauts to the 
moon and beyond. 

More than 150 students from 23 states and Puerto Rico took part this 
summer in a new NASA education project called "INSPIRE" – the 
Interdisciplinary National Science Project Incorporating Research and 
Education Experience. Nearly 400 students applied for the internships 
at NASA's 10 field centers. 

At NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., 18 high 
school seniors and college freshmen from Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, 
Missouri and Tennessee spent two months immersed in the real-world 
work of the U.S. space program. They pored over computer models and 
mission-critical design data, designed and created content for NASA 
Web sites, and built and tested scale rocket engines and full-sized 
components and hardware. 

Some even helped NASA engineers and scientists lay the groundwork for 
building the Ares I rocket, slated to begin test flights in 2009. 
Ares I is the first flight vehicle in NASA's Constellation Program, 
tasked with developing a new generation of vehicles, hardware and 
infrastructure needed to support science on the International Space 
Station, create permanent research stations on the moon and permit 
new exploration of Mars and worlds beyond. 

Laboratories and test sites. Rubbing shoulders with astronauts and 
prize-winning scientists, while learning the ropes of dormitory life 
on the nearby campus of the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Not 
your typical summer job with pay -- INSPIRE interns earn a stipend 
for participating – but all of them agree it's been a 
once-in-a-lifetime experience. 

"There aren't many programs out there that cater to students at this 
level in their education, nor let them contribute to real projects," 
said 17-year-old Brenna Dittmar of Franklin, Tenn. She spent her 
summer at the Marshall Center designing robotic test platforms to 
study an innovative, reconfigurable computer chip -- practical 
experience she'll take with her this fall as a freshman studying 
chemical engineering at Tennessee Technological University in 
Cookeville, Tenn. 

"I realized early that I was interested in space exploration, and I 
wanted to gain a deeper understanding of what's really involved in 
science and engineering careers," said Yiwei Cheng, a 16-year-old 
Huntsville native preparing for her senior year at Huntsville's 
Grissom High School. The INSPIRE project put her to work in 
Marshall's Vehicle Systems Design and Integration Branch, calculating 
spacecraft data to assess possible future Mars missions -- the next 
ambitious step after NASA returns explorers to the moon. 

It's not just the students that benefit. "Our INSPIRE students are 
helping NASA achieve mission-critical goals to usher in the 
Constellation era of American space exploration and discovery," said 
Tammy Rowan, manager of the Academic Affairs Office at Marshall. "And 
in addition to the near-term benefits they bring us, we hope their 
experience will lead them to come work for NASA after college, 
sustaining America's technical workforce as we head deeper into the 
21st century -- and deeper into the solar system." 

Cheng's INSPIRE mentor, David Teare, an engineer working on Ares I in 
the Vehicle Systems Design and Integration Branch, said the project 
helps spotlight the importance of studies in the "STEM" fields -- 
science, technology, engineering and mathematics. 

"Programs such as INSPIRE demonstrate to young people the level of 
meticulous design and planning that go into every detail of a space 
mission or technology development program," Teare said. 

Fellow mentor Steve Richardson, integrated assembly lead for the Ares 
I Upper Stage Project, agreed. "Students not only advance their 
technical knowledge, but also learn it takes extensive communication 
to properly accomplish project goals, and that making a contribution 
to a large program such as Ares can be extremely rewarding," he said. 
"If we match them with activities in which they can excel, they'll 
return to their schools and share with others the exciting work being 
conducted at NASA -- helping spur further interest in space 
exploration." 

The INSPIRE project is open to students in grades 9-12, including high 
school graduates preparing for their first year of college. 
Interested students first must apply for entry into the INSPIRE 
online community, NASA's education resource for students, parents and 
teachers. Students must be U.S. citizens and have at least an overall 
2.5 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. Once selected for INSPIRE, 
they may compete for internships and other opportunities. 

To participate in the summer project, students must maintain a minimum 
3.0 grade point average, submit an essay about their interest in NASA 
and the space program, and include two letters of recommendation from 
teachers or adult mentors with their application. NASA education 
officials assess all submissions, seeking candidates who demonstrate 
teamwork, leadership potential and career aspirations in fields 
related to math, science and engineering. 

Through the INSPIRE online community, NASA provides resources and 
activities that help parents champion their students' goals. NASA 
also contributes to classrooms, providing teaching modules and 
resources designed to capture students' imaginations and enhance 
their technical and problem-solving skills. 

Most importantly, said Steve Chance, who manages the INSPIRE project 
at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., INSPIRE gives students, parents 
and teachers a mechanism for interacting with one another. They ask 
questions, share knowledge and build "a community of practice" that 
NASA hopes will lead them to pursue careers in fields critical to 
NASA and the nation, Chance said. 

Count on it, said many of Marshall's INSPIRE interns. "I love 
everything about space," said 18-year-old Megan Owen of Sioux City, 
Iowa, who helped NASA this summer troubleshoot and solve engineering 
design challenges for the Ares I rocket design. Owen, headed to Iowa 
State University in Ames this fall to study aerospace engineering, 
added, "I can't think of a better place to work than NASA." 

High school senior Marcus Robertson, 17, of Empire, Ala., is aiming 
even higher. After a summer spent working in the Marshall Center's 
test area, where engineers soon will begin test-firing the 
next-generation engines that will propel explorers to other worlds, 
Robertson intends to be one of them. 

"I am going to be an astronaut," he said with confidence, "and I am 
definitely going to the moon." 

The Marshall Center conducts dozens of educational projects and 
initiatives to help attract and inspire America’s next generation of 
scientists, engineers and explorers. For more information about 
INSPIRE and other NASA education projects, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/postsecondary/programs/INSPIRE_Project.html 


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