Student Teams to Conduct Microgravity Experiments at Glenn Research Center

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Mar 01, 2012, 03:41 ET

CLEVELAND, March 1, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA-selected student teams will test their science experiments in the 2.2-second drop tower at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland from March 15-20. While in free fall, the students' experiments will experience microgravity conditions similar to those on the International Space Station.

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The selections are part of two national science competitions: Dropping In a Microgravity Environment (DIME) for high school student teams and What If No Gravity? (WING) for student teams in fifth through eighth grades.

The four winning DIME teams will receive a stipend to support a visit to Glenn to conduct their experiments, review the results with NASA personnel and tour Glenn's facilities.

The teams selected for DIME are:

Ransom Everglades High School, Miami, Fla.
Neighborhood After School Science Association, Ava, N.Y.
Licking Heights High School, Pataskala, Ohio
St. Ursula Academy, Toledo, Ohio

On March 15 and 16, the Neighborhood After School Science Association and Licking Heights High School will operate their experiments. St. Ursula Academy and Ransom Everglades High School will conduct theirs on March 19 and 20.

Twenty-four WING teams were selected to build their experiments and ship them to Glenn for testing by NASA. The experiments and resulting data will be returned to the teams so they can analyze their performance and prepare reports about their findings.

The teams selected for WING are:

Tuba City Boarding School, Tuba City, Ariz. (3 teams)
Ellen Ochoa Learning Center, Cudahy, Calif. (2 teams)
Warren G. Harding Middle School, Des Moines, Iowa
Holy Rosary School, Duluth, Minn.
Sleeping Giant Middle School, Livingston, Mont.
Neighborhood After School Science Association, Ava, N.Y.
Longfellow Middle School, Lorain, Ohio
Menlo Park Academy, Cleveland, Ohio
Independence Middle School, Bethel Park, Pa. (2 teams)
Drums Elementary Middle School, Drums, Pa.
Hazleton Area School District - Freeland Elementary Middle School, Freeland, Pa.
Valley Elementary Middle School, Sugarloaf, Pa. (2 teams)
St. Nicholas - St. Mary's School, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Webb School of Knoxville, Knoxville, Tenn. (4 teams)
Kenmore Middle School, Arlington, Va.
Washington Irving Middle School, Springfield, Va.

DIME, WING and other educational programs help NASA attract and retain students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM. Having a skilled workforce in these disciplines is critical to future science, engineering and space exploration programs.

The Teaching From Space Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston sponsors the DIME and WING competitions. The office manages educational opportunities that use the human spaceflight program and the unique environment of microgravity to inspire students.

For information about NASA's DIME and WING student competitions, visit:

http://spaceflightsystems.grc.nasa.gov/DIME.html

For more information about NASA's education programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/education

For information about NASA's Glenn Research Center, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/glenn

SOURCE NASA