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Voyages in Education and Public Outreach

An Office of Space Science Newsletter

May 2004 Issue 11

On the Inside

Updates 3

Exhibit - “Astrobiology in Yellowstone” 5

Education Products 6

Education Programs 8

 Imaging Neptune

 One World, Many Worlds

 Tracing the Structure of the Universe

 Astro-E2 Competition

 Imagine Mars

 Deep Impact’s Small Telescope Program

Scientists in Education and Public Outreach 10

Support Network Profile 11

 NESSIE

On the Horizon 12

The Mars Public Engagement Program

Michelle Viotti, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The excitement over the landing of twin

rovers on Mars had been building for months,

nurtured by initial education and public outreach

activities during the 7-month flight to Mars. The

expected wave of public attention came, as the

world watched live television and web

broadcasts, holding a collective breath during the

critical six minutes of entry, descent, and landing.

Within days, there were thousands of emails

wishing congratulations that ranged in tone from

the spunky to the spiritual. And then came the

questions!

In January and February of 2004,

marsoutreach@jpl.nasa.gov received some

30,000 emails (last year, emails totaled a more

manageable 1,500). While noticeable trends in

questions helped the Mars Public Engagement

team answer in large batches, it’s been a fun

challenge to keep up, as so many people have

sent back images they’ve examined

themselves, asking “What’s this specific

feature?” and “Can you tell me more about

that?” Even three months into the mission, the

interest remains at levels previously unseen in

other missions at this stage.

Internet hits are now over nine billion, with

70 million unique visitors. Within a few weeks,

visitors to the rover site first exceeded NASA’s

yearly traffic, and then yearly traffic to all

government Web sites. Continued visits may

set records for the longest sustained “event”

in Internet history and even the Guinness Book

of World Records has inquired about statistics!

As science team member Jim Rice has said, “I

love seeing the web statistics and answering

emails. It’s incredibly meaningful to know that

Opportunity looks back at its lander - its home for the six

month cruise to Mars. Rover tracks, bounce marks, and

airbag retraction marks are visible around the lander.

The calibration target or sundial, which both rover

panoramic cameras use to verify the true colors and

brightness of the red planet, is visible on the back end of

the rover.
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people care—particularly when you’re living on

“Mars Time” and working weird hours. It’s a real

boost at 3 o’clock in the morning.”

The long-term continuation of return visits to

the Web site is due in large part to the science

team’s decision to make images from the rover

available to the public as soon as the information

is received on Earth. Often, space missions have

a waiting period for the public release of images

and data sets so that the science team has sufficient

time to conduct research and report their findings

through peer-reviewed journals. However, as

Steve Squyres, Principal Investigator from Cornell,

has emphasized, “We wanted the world to have

as close to the same experience as we do—awe

and excitement at seeing the pictures as soon as

they arrive.” That early commitment—and a lot

of technical preparation work to convert the coded

data from the rover into web-formatted images

ready within minutes—enabled Mars Public

Engagement to establish a Mars Museum

Visualization Alliance, colloquially known as

“Mars Viz.” The intent of the alliance was to create

another assured point of access to the images and

data for the public, one that reached nationwide

to the communities in which people live. Not only

do the member museums, science centers, and

planetaria offer big-screen facilities for viewing the

images from Mars in all their high-resolution glory,

they also have knowledgeable staff who can

authentically answer questions and provide

innovative programming that brings recent

science results to their interested visitors. Says Jon

Elvert, president of the International Planetarium

Society, “For me, the magic is being able to put

the live stuff into our daily programming. Then

the planetarium truly becomes a learning center.”

The alliance, now at 108 members, began two

years ago in discussions with a small working

group of museum professionals who had an

interest in Mars and an expertise in presenting

multimedia products to audiences. The upfront

investment was in taking the time to listen and to

respond to what they wanted and then create

various technical approaches to meet those desires.

The months of preparation really paid off—the

museum community has reported record

attendance for Mars events, with sold-out crowds

even in snowy conditions. Even at the end of

March, teachers had committed to driving some

300 miles to attend a Mars educator workshop

sponsored by their “local” science center.

On the formal education front, over 40,000

educators signed up online to receive the EarthMars comparison poster and a robotics education

poster featuring the rovers that will soon make its

debut. Over 700 students from around the country

participated directly in the mission and have gone

to peer teach or to give public talks, extending our

reach even further. Over 30 competitively selected

students had the opportunity to work with the

mission team directly in rover field tests in the

California desert prior to landing and in science

operations during the mission. As a result of their

experience and a heightened sense of academic

self-confidence, many are now considering careers

in science and engineering. “This experience

changed my life” is frequently heard from

participants and initial tracking shows they’re

sticking with it in college.

The big challenge is now to bring this lifechanging experience to many more students. A

new pilot program to involve students directly in

Mars missions is the Mars Exploration Student

Data Team, which is a real-time, distance-learning

program. Connected across thousands of miles,

high school students from 53 competitively

selected schools form a “virtual research team.”

Organized in three sub-teams—Rover Watch, Storm

Watch, and Orbit Watch—they use orbital data

collected by the Mars Odyssey and Mars Global

Surveyor spacecraft to study weather,

temperature, dust, landforms, and crossover orbits

at the landing sites. The students have designed

their own experiments and will be presenting their

results at a science colloquium hosted by the Mars

Space Flight Facility at Arizona State University.

A Mars Visualization event at the Exploratorium in

San Francisco, California.
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Updates Updates

Farewell to Jeff

Dr. Philip Sakimoto, Acting Director,

Space Science E/PO Program

After nearly 10 years spent conceiving,

developing, and nurturing the NASA Space

Science Education and Public Outreach (E/PO)

Program, Dr. Jeffrey Rosendhal has left his position

as Director of Space Science E/PO to become

NASA’s Assistant Associate Administrator for

Programs in the Office of Education. In his new

role, Jeff will contribute greatly to the development

of NASA’s overall education program; however,

his influence on and guidance of the Space Science

E/PO program will be sorely missed.

Jeff leaves behind a program that has grown

to become one of the world’s largest and most

respected education programs in space science. He

has caused clear changes in the attitudes of space

scientists towards being involved in education.

Early skepticism has turned into positive support

for engaging in E/PO throughout the space

science community.

The key to Jeff’s success is that he did it right.

He relied on external advisors and education

experts at every step of the planning, and he

established a carefully orchestrated network of

Education Forums, regional Broker/Facilitators,

mission E/PO specialists, space science

researchers, and external partners to carry out

those plans.

It now falls to me to guide the NASA Space

Science E/PO program during this transition

period. Doing so will require even more reliance

on the expertise, entrepreneurship, and

enthusiasm of the extended network that has

become the NASA Space Science E/PO family. It’s

easy to look like a great manager when you have

a team full of superstars.

It’s an example of students being able to

participate in authentic science as it happens at

Mars and is a prototype for future efforts to

directly involve students in exploration and

discovery. The students are so excited about their

research that they are voluntarily staying on for

the rovers’ extended mission, which is expected

to last into the summer.

Even at the lower grades, teachers are

reporting student progress as a result of interest

in the rovers. New classroom activities called

“Roverquest” enable students to follow along with

mission discoveries as they happen and compare

Mars to Earth. Anecdotally, an elementary-school

teacher sent in a report from a student who hadn’t

been interested in schoolwork throughout the year,

but had voluntarily gone home and written a 5-

page report that hadn’t even been assigned.

Direct participation and correlation to their

own lives is key to student interest and it doesn’t

always take sophisticated, technology-rich

programs to spur engagement. A popular new

program called “Rock Around the World”

encourages students to send in a rock from their

region. Newly recruited undergraduate geology

students get experience in doing spectral analysis

on the rocks so that each person can find out the

composition of their rock and see how it compares

to those being studied by the rovers. It’s been so

popular that the Post Office has already delivered

almost 4,000 rock samples from around the

country.

An educator workshop where 170 teachers worked on a

sundial activity that correlates with the sundials

(marsdials) carried by each rover.

All of these and many other activities have

centered on the two visions for the Mars Public

Engagement Program: to share the adventure and

to make Mars a real place. As one California

parent reported, “My son’s third-grade class is so

excited about the rovers. At his birthday party, I

had all the kids bring a rock to send in. Thanks

for making it come alive in our own backyard!”
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NASA is a Hit with After School Providers

Shari Asplund, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The OSS Support Network’s CommunityBased Organizations Working Group sponsored

a NASA delegation to the National School Age

Care Alliance (NSACA) annual conference in

Tampa, FL, Feb. 26 - 28, 2004. The conference was

attended by about 2,500 attendees from the outof-school-time community nationwide, including

representatives from community-based

organizations, school-based programs, military

bases, and private programs.

The OSS booth was staffed by Shari Asplund

(NASA, JPL), representing the Solar System

Exploration Forum; Julie Lutz, (S2N2 broker,

Seattle, WA); Kathryn Guimond (SERCH broker,

Charleston, SC); Laurie Ruberg, (MARSSB broker,

Wheeling, WV); and Kay Tobola, (materials

curation group, JSC, Houston, TX). The booth

featured handouts for after school providers from

missions and programs in all four OSS education

forums and an opportunity to speak to nearly all

of the 400 participants who visited the booth.

There was great interest and enthusiasm from the

after school community for NASA’s products and

activities. Though many were developed for use

in formal education classrooms, most can be

adapted for informal education settings such as

after school programs.

Julie Lutz and Kay Tobola conducted a

workshop on NASA Space Science activities and

resources. Julie spoke about NASA missions and

destinations and led some hands-on

demonstrations of fun activities appropriate for

this community.

Space Weather Center Web site Redesign

Paul Dusenbery, Space Science Institute

The Space Weather Center Web site was

originally launched in 1999 in support of the 1,000

square foot nationally touring science exhibit of

June 8, 2004 : The Transit of Venus

Sten Odenwald, NASA Goddard Space flight Center

On Tuesday morning June 8, 2004 Venus will

transit the Sun as viewed from Earth. Not since

December 6, 1882 has the celestial geometry been

favorable for such a sight. It was only through

transit of Venus observations that we finally

understood the true scale of our solar system and

the universe beyond. Although the scientific

usefulness of the transit of Venus has been eclipsed

by other more precise methods, we still use this

approach in the 21st century to study the

atmospheres of planets orbiting distant stars.

The transit of Venus is the NASA Sun-Earth

Day theme for 2004. Through a variety of highimpact programs teachers and students are

learning about the history, mathematics and

science behind this rare event. They also learn

about the difference between Earth and Venus in

terms of their magnetic fields and interactions with

the solar wind. The programs began with NASA/

CONNECT “The Venus Transit” on March 18th.

On Sun-Earth Day, March 19th, Planet Quest

featured a live panel discussion Webcast “Venus

and the Search for Habitable Planets.” On March

23, Nortel Network’s Kidz Online featured a

Webcast describing the science and history behind

the transit and how to safely observe it. Earth and

Sky Radio will feature a radio program on this

event during the week before June 8. The

culminating activity will be a live Webcast,

produced by NASA and the Exploratorium, of

the entire 6-hour transit viewed from Athens,

Greece.

Visit http://sunearthday.nasa.gov for more

details about the transit of Venus and NASA’s

involvement. Regular updates of what museums

and science centers are planning to do can also be

viewed at the “What’s Happening in Museums”

page. Details about the satellite, transponder, and

Web URL where the program can be viewed will

be available in mid-May at the “Television and

Live Webcast” link. Webcast information is also

available at http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/

sunearthday/2004/vt_webcasts_2004_1.htm.

Scientists are encouraged to register at the SunEarth Day Web site to help museums and schools

make the public experience of this event a

memorable and enriching one.
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the same name. While the exhibit has since retired,

the Space Weather Center Web site continues to

be one of the most comprehensive and accessible

space weather information resources available

online today.

A redesigned site was launched in April

with a fresh new look and a number of online

interactive activities that help communicate some

of the basic concepts related to space weather. The

overall structure of the site tells the space weather

story, beginning with the plasma state of matter

and a thorough introduction to the Sun–the place

where space weather begins.

Other areas of the site continue the story,

focusing on auroras and storms in Earth’s

magnetic field and space weather forecasting and

research/modeling. Visitors also can access

additional resources, such as a space weather FAQ,

links, and a glossary. The site may be accessed at

http://www.spaceweathercenter.org and is

intended for general audiences, i.e., the space

interested public.

The NASA SEU Educator Ambassadors

Program

Dr. Philip Plait, Dr. Lynn Cominsky, and Sarah Silva

NASA Education and Public Outreach Group at

Sonoma State University

The NASA E/PO Group at Sonoma State

University (SSU) is proud to announce the

addition of 14 new Educator Ambassadors (EAs)

for the Structure and Evolution of the Universe

(SEU) theme. The EA program consists of

exceptional educators—chosen via a highlycompetitive national search—who help design,

test, and disseminate activities based on SEU

science.

Coordinated at SSU, the program now

consists of 23 EAs who contribute to the E/PO

from six different SEU missions (GLAST, Swift,

XMM-Newton, LISA, GALEX, Astro-E2) and

NASA Goddard’s High Energy Astrophysics

Science Archive Research Center. These EAs teach

math, science, and technology classes from

elementary grades through high school and

college at their home institutions in more than 20

states.

During 2002-2003, the original cohort of 11 EAs

gave over 100 workshops that were attended by

more than 14,500 teachers in the United States and

Canada. We will be holding a training workshop

for the new group of EAs in July 2004.

More information about the program is at

http://epo.sonoma.edu/ambassadors.

New Exhibit New Exhibit

NASA and Lockheed Martin Make

Contribution for Astrobiology Exhibits in

Yellowstone

Christine Giannas, Yellowstone Park Foundation and

Catherine Tsairides, NASA Ames Research Center

How does life begin and evolve? Is there life

elsewhere in the Universe? What is the future of

life on Earth? These fundamental questions make

up the science of astrobiology and some of NASA’s

top scientists are trying to answer them in—of all

places—Yellowstone National Park. Microscopic

organisms that have inhabited Yellowstone’s hot

springs for billions of years tell the story of life on

Earth and could eventually lead to the discovery

of life on other planets. Soon, Yellowstone visitors

will be able to learn about this amazing area of

research.

A $66,000 grant to the nonprofit Yellowstone

Park Foundation, from Lockheed Martin

Corporation and the Ames Research Center team

of the NASA Astrobiology Institute, will fund the

development of permanent, outdoor exhibits in

several locations throughout Yellowstone. The

exhibits will interpret Yellowstone’s hot springs

as extreme habitats for amazing life forms and help

the Park’s three million annual visitors understand

the importance of protecting these rare

hydrothermal features.

Scientists are looking at both living

thermophiles, the microscopic organisms living in

the Park’s hot springs, and the fossil remains of
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Cool Cosmos: Portal to the Invisible

Universe

Michelle Thaller, Spitzer Science Center

Shortly after the launch of the Spitzer Space

Telescope, the Infrared Processing and Analysis

Center (IPAC) unveiled its new public Web site,

Cool Cosmos (http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu).

The site allows visitors to explore many aspects

of infrared science, as well as the larger concept

of looking at the universe in all parts of the

electromagnetic spectrum. Educators can

download posters, classroom activities, and entire

curriculum modules in the “Resource” section, or

view step-by-step instructions for experiments

designed to make invisible light accessible to

students of all levels. The most popular site in

the “Image Gallery” is the Infrared Zoo, featuring

infrared camera images of dozens of animals, as

well as tutorials about how animals adapt to

different thermal environments. For a direct link

to scientists, kids can submit questions to our Ask

an Astronomer site. Some of the questions are

selected for our Ask an Astronomer video series,

New Educational Products New Educational Products

White Elephant Back Annex spring, near Mammoth Hot

Springs in Yellowstone National Park, one of the sites

being studied.

thermophiles that lived up to four billion years

ago. Comparing the fossil record from

Yellowstone to rocks collected by the Mars Rovers,

Spirit and Opportunity, may enable us to

recognize evidence of past life on Mars.

Extreme Solar System Exploration –

Teachable Moments in 2003-2006

Leslie Lowes, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Over the next several years, more than a dozen

spacecraft are scheduled to launch, to orbit, collect

samples from, and/or land on numerous Solar

System bodies. These robotic explorers will

comprise the most advanced scientific space fleet

ever assembled and will advance our

understanding of where our Solar System came

from and how we came to be here. Clues to these

mysteries are scattered among our nine planets

and the multitude of moons, comets, and

asteroids. NASA just landed two rovers on Mars,

flew a spacecraft through the tail of a comet, plans

to probe the rings and moons of Saturn, and return

tiny fragments of the Sun to Earth. Other

spacecraft will be launched to Mercury, the

asteroid belt, and Pluto and the Kuiper Belt region.

These robotic explorers are charting a course that

will take humanity back to the Moon and beyond.

This series of mission events can provide

“teachable moments,” drawing the interest of the

public, educators, and students to current events

in science and space exploration. We emphasize

the challenges of traveling to these distant worlds

and harsh environments with an “Extreme

which features IPAC scientists answering

questions from the public. These short, twominute videos combine graphics and animations

with the experience of hearing a real scientist talk

about their interests and careers. One of our

segments, “Why Doesn’t the Moon Fall Down?”

won a Telly award in 2003. Come explore Cool

Cosmos, and the invisible universe!
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Unlocking the Mysteries: Science on the

Edge of the Solar System

Shari Asplund, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

NASA’s Discovery Program has released a

new education resource to let students design their

own space science investigation. Based on the

award-winning video, “Unlocking the Mysteries,”

it features the 23-minute video about the ten

Discovery missions and encourages students to

think about the mysteries they want to explore.

They become the scientists and engineers as they

learn the different skills and abilities needed to

design a mission and achieve its goals.

This module is written for grades 5-8. It could

also be used in after school programs or camps. It

contains a Teacher Guide, supporting materials,

and a list of Internet Resources including ten

additional activities, one from each Discovery

mission. It was developed by Mid-continent

Research for Education and Learning (McREL) in

Aurora, CO.

It is available in DVD or CD-ROM format or

on the web at http://discovery.nasa.gov/

education.html. For more information, contact

Shari Asplund at shari.e.asplund@jpl.nasa.gov.

Explore Mars with MarsQuest Online

James Harold, Space Science Institute

The MarsQuest Online Web site (http://

www.marsquestonline.org) enables the public,

educators, and students to gain a sense of what

it’s like to explore another world. Visitors to the

site can examine the most recent rover images from

within navigable panoramas, following the rovers

as they move across the Martian surface. Visitors

can also engage in a variety of online activities,

including driving a rover, flying in 3D over

Martian terrain, and solving Mars Mysteries.

Resources for educators and families, including

the Family Guide to Mars, are also available for

downloading.

MarsQuest Online is funded by the

National Science Foundation and developed

through collaboration between TERC, the Space

Science Institute in Boulder, Colorado, and the Jet

Propulsion Laboratory. Mirroring of the site is

provided by the University Corporation for

Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado, and the

San Diego Supercomputing Center.

Exploration” theme. The Solar System

Exploration (SSE) Education and Public Outreach

Forum and our mission and research E/PO leads

have prepared audience-focused packages and

training based on this theme. Drawn from existing

resources, educational packages containing an

overview presentation, exploration timeline, solar

system lithos, and age-appropriate K-12 classroom

activity sets are available electronically from our

Web site (URL given below). Limited hardcopy

versions are provided for hands-on training, such

as our short courses at regional and national

teacher conferences. For the museum and

planetarium community, a compilation of relevant

existing animations and videos is also available.

Solar System Ambassadors and Solar System

Educators trained on these materials are available

for presentations. A Solar System Community

Nights kit is available for use in small towns and

inner city settings. Through our national

relationship with the Girl Scouts of the USA, their

trainers and leaders will also be familiarized with

the concepts behind this period of “Extreme

Exploration” in the Solar System.

More information on the products and

training is available at

http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/education

For further information, contact the SSE

Forum Co-Director at Leslie.Lowes@jpl.nasa.gov.
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Imaging Neptune: A NASA ROSS E/PO

Program

Rosalyn A. Pertzborn, Lawrence A. Sromovsky and

Sanjay S. Limaye, University of Wisconsin

Recent, dramatic observations from the

Hubble Space Telescope (HST) have shown

significant observable changes in Neptune’s

atmosphere. These

exciting images

have created

unique E/PO

opportunities for

the predominantly

rural Midwest

region, thanks to

the NASA ROSS

supported research

of Dr. Lawrence A.

Sromovsky of the

University of

W isconsinMadison’s Space

Science and

Engineering Center

(SSEC). The

sequence of HST

Images of Neptune

taken in 1996, 1998,

and 2002 indicate

significant changes

Images of Neptune taken by the

Hubble Space Telescope show

the dramatic changes in the

brightness and width of high

altitude cloud bands.

in the absolute

reflectivity and

width of high

altitude cloud

bands.

The scientific

value and visual

impact of the

Neptune HST

images taken over a

relatively short

timeframe provide

a critical “hook”

that enables both

formal and

informal E/PO

opportunities. Are changes in width and

brightness caused by Neptune’s seasons? What

Educational Programs Educational Programs causes the unusual behavior of the “New Great

Dark Spots?” How long will the observable

changes continue?

Scientific questions raised by planetary

scientists in response to the HST observations can

easily be aligned to educational themes for K-12

and general public audiences. Most notably,

students/teachers presented with these images

raise questions that are almost identical to the

questions posed by scientists, thus creating the

basis for inquiry-based learning!

A sample “Imaging Neptune” event in Spring

2003, at the Barlow Planetarium in Appleton, WI

attracted over 400 students from surrounding

rural schools where they had the opportunity to

share in the excitement of discovery and raise the

same intriguing questions posed by Dr.

Sromovsky. Presentation materials developed by

the E/PO team were highly rated, with a standing

invitation to participate in future events. The UWMadison Speakers Bureau provided leveraged

support for advertising and travel as a “UW-Onthe-Road” program. A similar general public

event, was given at the UW-Space Place, an offsite space science outreach facility which primarily

serves minority and low-income families.

The “Imaging Neptune” effort exemplifies the

educational impact a researcher can make by

bringing the excitement of space science research

to rural, underserved communities for a relatively

small investment. Plans for teacher in-service

training are underway with the Rockford, Illinois,

Unified School District, and will expand upon the

resources developed under the “Imaging

Neptune” program.

MIT Center for Space Research offers

Two Educator Workshops:

One World, Many Worlds: Searching for Life on

Earth and Other Planets - An Astrobiology

Workshop for Massachusetts Secondary

School Teachers

The goal of this workshop is to increase

teachers’ understanding of key topics in

astrobiology and provide a practical context in

which science can be taught with an

interdisciplinary approach. The program consists

of ten weekly meetings which introduce

participants to TERC’s Educator Resource Guide
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Tracing the Structure of the Universe:

What Do We Know? How Do We Know It?

Can We Use It In the Classroom?

The MIT Center for Space Research will host

a five-day summer program designed to expose

teachers to current space science research

associated with NASA’s High Energy Transient

Explorer (HETE) mission. The goal of this “2004

HETE Summer Institute,” is to increase teachers’

own understanding of key topics related to the

structure and evolution of the universe theme and

to specifically provide a context in which several

of the Massachusetts Department of Education

science learning standards can be met.

The Institute will be held at the MIT Center

for Space Research August 2 - 6, 2004. To apply

and for additional information contact Irene Porro

at iporro@space.mit.edu or http://space.mit.edu/

CSR/outreach/.

Observe the Universe with the latest NASA

X-ray observatory! Astro-E2 Competition

Ilana Harrus, Goddard Space Flight Center

The Astro-E2 E/PO group is opening the

doors of research to a team of highly motivated

and independent high-school students. From

December 2004 to February 2005, they will accept

and review observing proposals from high-school

teams for using data from the Astro-E2 X-ray

satellite.

Each entry will describe a research project and

an astronomical observation (anything from black

holes to supernova remnants) to be carried out by

Astro-E2. The winning team will work with

professional astronomers and present their results

at one of the summer meetings of the American

Astronomical Society.

Astro-E2 is an observatory to be launched in

Feb. 2005 from Japan. The main instrument onboard, a micro-calorimeter, distinguishes very

small differences in the energy of X-ray photons

by measuring their heat. For more information,

see: http://astroe2lc.gsfc.nasa.gov

Deep Impact Mission’s Small Telescope

Science Program

Lucy McFadden and Stephanie McLaughlin,

University of Maryland; Gary Emerson, Ball Aerospace

and Technologies Corporation

Comet Tempel 1 is the target of NASA’s Deep

Impact Mission. As the comet approaches the

inner solar system, it will brighten considerably

and undergo significant changes in its activity such

as beginning jet activity, producing water, etc.

While project collaborators at large telescopes will

provide professional level data, they cannot

provide continuous coverage as they may have

other observing commitments or be closed due to

bad weather.

The Small Telescope Science Program (STSP)

is a collaborative effort among amateur

astronomers, professional astronomers, and

private observatories spread out around the world

to complement the mission observations. The goal

is continuous monitoring to help understand the

activity changes along the comet’s orbit. Comet

Tempel 1 will be visible through amateur

astronomers’ small telescopes by the time of

impact in July 2005. The Deep Impact team is

thrilled to engage the public in their mission with

this hands-on opportunity for amateur

astronomers. For more information visit http://

deepimpact.astro.umd.edu/stsp

“Life on Earth and Elsewhere?” and let them meet

with scientists from the Harvard-Smithsonian

Center for Astrophysics (CfA). The scientists

engage in informal conversations with the

participants, contributing the latest news in the

discovery of planets in other solar systems and

introducing the participants to new theories on

the formation of solar systems. The workshop is

part of the Infrared Optical Telescope Array E/

PO program and is offered at CfA in Spring and

Fall 2004. For more information, http://cfawww.harvard.edu/cfa/oir/IOTA/EPO/ or

contact Irene Porro at iporro@space.mit.edu.
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Profiles of Scientists in Profiles of Scientists in

Education & Public Outreach Education & Public Outreach

This profile is based on excerpts of an interview

with Dr. Phil Scherrer, about his involvement in

Education and Public Outreach (E/PO). Dr. Cherilynn

Morrow (Space Science Institute or SSI) designed the

interview questionnaire. SSI’s Preston Dyches edited

the responses in May, 2003.

Current Professional Position:

Professor of Physics (research faculty) at

Stanford University. I’m the PI for two

instruments: the Michelson Doppler Imager on the

Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO)

spacecraft and the Helioseismic and Magnetic

Imager for the Solar Dynamics Observatory. I’m

also director of the Wilcox Solar Observatory.

Description of Phil’s Work in E/PO:

Essentially all of the projects I’m involved with

have E/PO components. It amounts to a

reasonable base of

funding, so we’re

able to do a lot.

Fortunately there

are a number very

dedicated staff

members to assist

with the various

projects. I also act

as coordinator for

several press

releases per year,

including Space Science Updates for NASA. These

are significant efforts that take a good deal of

preparation.

Phil’s Time Commitment:

I spend about five percent of my time doing

the paid part of my E/PO work. On the volunteer

side, I do about one public lecture per year. There’s

also a 4-H astronomy club here that draws kids

from about four different schools, and I meet with

them once a month.

The Biggest Challenges to his E/PO Involvement:

Learning how to present things to people who

don’t have a detailed science background is a

challenge. You have to put your material into a

form that is valuable to someone, without doing

it in a condescending way.

I think it’s important to go to classrooms and

give talks from time to time, to see where the target

is, just like it’s important to talk to the press. We’re

not journalists. Sometimes you’ll realize that, for

example, you’re talking about flows underneath

sunspots that you’re able to measure, and their

question is, “What’s a sunspot?”. You need the

contact to keep the context, so that you can

communicate. It’s a struggle sometimes to get

others to use language and metaphors that are

accurate. It’s unfortunate when a story gets a good

deal of coverage but contains visualizations or

language that aren’t correct. But there is an

advantage that we have as “Sun-Earth connection”

people that many areas of physics don’t have. The

things we’re talking about can be described to

somebody and the audience can see how it relates

to their lives. Many of the things done in the

physics department are so obscure that it would

be very difficult to peak somebody’s interest, but

you can look at the Sun and see a sunspot.

Keeping balance is also important, because it’s fun

to do E/PO and you can get carried away.

His Greatest Positive Impact on the Project:

It’s hard to tell the impact you’re having on

the grand scale, but on the individual scale you

can. There are several kids that we’ve really

connected with and I think the work we’ve done

with them has been an important part of their

education. It doesn’t matter whether they grow

up to be scientists or not, because we’ve given

them a focus of interest outside of school and

shown them what they are capable of.

What he gets out of his Participation:

It’s certainly more personally satisfying than

some of the things we have to do! We’ve

distributed about 15,000 hand-held spectrometers

to students across the country. They’re simple–

just a poster that you cut, fold and tape together–

but the thought that so many kids can go out and

look at a street light and see what it’s made of is

great. It says that something’s cooking out there.

Phil’s Words of Wisdom about E/PO:

As the PI of a major project, take E/PO not

simply as a duty, but embrace it as a key part of

your activities. With a larger project you have an

opportunity to actually make a big impact. The

challenge we all have is how to deal with the little

bits of funding that are available and how to make

them useful. That’s difficult with smaller projects,

but you just have to be proactive and look for ways

to get your stuff out there, because people are

interested. They want to know.
11

NESSIE Sightings on the Rise

William H. Waller, Museum of Science, Boston

The job of Broker/Facilitator as part of NASA’s

Space Science Education and Public Outreach

(E/PO) Support Network is conducted mostly in

the background, well beyond the spotlights. So it

is with NESSIE – the New England Space Science

Initiative in Education. Like our serpentine

namesake, NESSIE operates mostly below the

surface, with only modest indications of our

presence. In one sound-bite, our mission can be

described as “fostering partnerships in cosmic

discovery.”

Engaging Scientists:

Space scientists bring expertise, authenticity,

and excitement to the educational process. To

engage space scientists in E/PO throughout New

England, we are trying several approaches —

including personal contacts, visits to universities,

presentations and consultations at professional

meetings, and a quarterly newsletter dubbed

FINESSE – Folio of Information for New England

Space Scientists in Education.

Getting Back to Basics:

A major challenge in space science education

is to determine and communicate “best practices”

that are based on sound research in science

education. A positive step in this direction was

recently published in the Astronomy Education

Review (see http://aer.noao.edu). “Learning

about the Earth’s Shape and Gravity: A Guide for

Teachers and Curriculum Developers,” by Lori

Agan and Cary Sneider, (NESSIE’s PI), reveals

multiple modes of perception, and features ways

to enable age-appropriate learning.

Enriching Educators:

The number and variety of educators in New

England is truly astronomical – encompassing

college faculty, K-12 teachers, curriculum

developers, publishers, planetarium directors,

museum educators, park interpreters, amateur

astronomers, scout leaders, and parents. To serve

all of these constituencies, we have learned to

concentrate our efforts on a few particular needs,

while providing general access to educational

resources through our Web site (see http://

www.mos.org/nessie).

In the last two years, we have focused on

facilitating workshops for K-12 teachers and

community educators, many of which followed

the Project ASTRO and Family ASTRO models of

co-training scientists and educators (see http://

www.astrosociety.org/education.html). This year,

we are concentrating on science educators at small

2- and 4-year colleges by co-sponsoring a major

symposium on teaching introductory astronomy.

Cosmos in the Classroom 2004 will be held from July

16-18 at Tufts University in Medford, MA (see

http://www.astrosociety.org/events/

cosmos.html).

NASA OSS NASA OSS

Support Network Profiles Support Network Profiles

This is the fifth in a series of articles that highlights

the contributions of the organizations of the NASA OSS

E/PO Support Network (ESN). The 12 groups which

make up the Support Network are involved in

coordinating and integrating the NASA OSS E/PO

program. They provide a point of entry for individuals

and organizations wishing to participate in the OSS

E/PO program. A brochure describing the Support

Network can be found at

http://spacescience.nasa.gov/education/resources/

ecosystem/brochure_low_res.pdf .

Team members of NESSIE. From L to R:

Cary Sneider (PI), Cathy Clemens (Co-I),

Bill Waller (Co-I), and Vaughan Ramon

(staff assistant).
12

On the Horizon On the Horizon

Alien Earths: Searching for Planets and Life

around Distant Stars

Paul Dusenbery, Space Science Institute

The Space Science Institute and its partners are

developing a 3,000 square-foot traveling

exhibition, called Alien Earths, that will bring

origins-related research and discoveries to

students and the American public. Alien Earths

will have four interrelated exhibit areas: Our Place

in Space, Star Birth, PlanetQuest, and Search for

Life. The exhibit’s size will permit it to visit

medium-sized museums in all regions of the

Chicago 2004 Needs You!

Dr. Philip Sakimoto, Co-Chair, OSS Diversity

Coordinating Committee

On June 28-29, 2004, several hundred scientists

will gather for a landmark event in Chicago.

Leading space science researchers and a diverse

array of professional scientists in related fields will

meet to discuss areas of mutual scientific interests

and to form partnerships for future space science

missions and research opportunities.

Should you come? If you are an established

space science researcher and you recognize the

importance of broadening the diversity of

participants in NASA’s space science missions and

research programs: YES! If you are a minority or

minority university scientist who is interested in

space science: YES! If you are in a position to

positively influence the membership of future

space science research teams: YES!

Success of the Chicago 2004 workshop

depends upon individual scientists taking the time

and effort to make it a success. It is a top priority

of the NASA Office of Space Science. Partial travel

support is available. For more information, visit

http://analyzer.depaul.edu/Chicago2004/

 Chicago 2004: Be There!

If you would like to receive an electronic copy

of future newsletters, contribute an article, or just

have questions about getting involved with the

NASA OSS E/PO Program, contact the editor Anita

Krishnamurthi, at Anita.Krishnamurthi@nasa.gov .

Prior issues of Voyages are online at http://

spacescience.nasa.gov/education/news .

to nine host museums and science centers in early

2005 at the Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley,

California. In addition to the exhibit, the project

includes workshops for educators and docents at

host sites, as well as a public Web site that will

use exhibit content to delve deeper into origins

research.

Genesis Mission Spacecraft Returns to Earth

Jacinta Behne, McRel

Making a dramatic entrance on September 8,

2004, NASA’s Genesis Sample Return Capsule

(SRC) returns to Earth in an astonishing mid-air

capture over the Utah Test and Training Range.

In anticipation of this exciting event, the Genesis

mission Education and Public Outreach team has

lots of opportunities for classroom and public

engagement. Museums, science centers, and

planetariums will serve as the hosts for a series of

summer educator academies, leading up to a

September 8 public sample return event in Salt

Lake City. For learning materials, fun kids’

activities, and more mission information, visit

http://genesismission.jpl.nasa.gov/.

country. It will begin its three-year tour (managed

by the Association of Science-Technology Centers)

Helicopter equipped with retrieval equipment practicing a

snag of the Genesis Sample Return Capsule.