MSGC Updates

There are quite a few upcoming opportunities happening over the next couple of months and the MSGC team wants to make sure that you are updated on the latest challenges, programs, internships, contests etc. 

Let the MSGC team know if you plan on participating by sending an email to mispacegrant@umich.edu

MSU Science Festival
April 1st-30th, 2025
https://myumi.ch/dAD8x
Save the date! The MSU Science Festival is back again for the 13th year on April 1st-30th. Learn more, view the full schedule and register students today.

Join the SETI Institute’s NASA Community College Network
Available Now
https://myumi.ch/2rmMr
The SETI Institute’s NASA Community College Network (NCCN) is a major initiative to bring NASA Subject Matter Experts (SME), research findings, and science resources into the nation’s community college system. NCCN is a constituent team of the Science Activation program, part of NASA’s Science Mission Directive (SMD).

Night Sky Network Webinar: Psyche – Exploration of a Metal World
Event Date:
Wednesday, April 16, at 9 p.m. EDT
https://myumi.ch/3R5j3
Launched in 2023, NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is on its way to a unique metal-rich asteroid with the same name, orbiting the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. By August 2029, the spacecraft will begin orbiting the asteroid for a 24-month mission of exploration and discovery. Join the NASA Night Sky Network for a webinar featuring planetary researcher Dr. David Williams. Learn about the mission and its objectives, discover why scientists are interested in the asteroid Psyche, and find out what it could teach us about other objects in our Solar System.

International Space Station Research and Development Conference Call for Abstracts
Submission Deadline: Friday, April 18
https://myumi.ch/bVZ8e
Low Earth orbit offers research and development opportunities across a wide variety of disciplines. The International Space Station (ISS) is a valuable platform for experiments and technology demonstrations that benefit life on Earth and in space.

2026 Moon to Mars Exploration Systems and Habitation Academic Innovation Challenge
Proposal Deadline: Monday, April 28
https://myumi.ch/jJ745
In collaboration with the National Space Grant Foundation, NASA is challenging university teams to develop innovative design ideas related to space habitats and deep space exploration missions. Challenge teams take part in real-world, hands-on design, research, and development opportunities. Select teams will receive $15,000 to $50,000 awards to design and produce studies or functional products that bridge strategic knowledge gaps, increase capabilities, and lower technology risks related to NASA’s Moon to Mars space exploration missions. Awardees will follow a tailored systems-engineering process with projects to be completed in the May 2026 time frame.

NASA L’SPACE Program – Summer 2025
Application Deadline: Sunday, May 4
https://myumi.ch/4mreq
The NASA Lucy Student Pipeline Accelerator and Competency Enabler (L’SPACE) Program is a free, online, interactive program for students interested in pursuing a career with NASA or other organizations in the space ecosystem. L’SPACE consists of two academies: the Mission Concept Academy and the NASA Proposal Writing and Evaluation Experience Academy. Students may participate in one academy per semester. Each 15-week academy is designed to provide unique, hands-on learning and insight into the dynamic world of the space industry. Students can expect to learn NASA mission procedures and protocols from industry professionals as they collaborate with fellow team members to complete mission-related projects.

Department of Energy: New Mexico Lab-Embedded Entrepreneur Program Opportunity
Application Deadline: May 9
https://myumi.ch/R3k7m
The New Mexico Lab-Embedded Entrepreneur Program (NM LEEP) is a unique program tailored to help passionate entrepreneurs bridge the gap between groundbreaking innovation and commercialization through expert mentorship, business support, and the talent and resources of Los Alamos National Laboratory. You will leverage our vast network of investors, government agencies, and world-class subject matter experts to advance your technology and find product-market fit rapidly.

2025 Kibo Robot Programming Challenge – Call for U.S. Teams
Registration Deadline: May 12
https://myumi.ch/y1rWX
The Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Kibo-RPC) – hosted by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) – invites teams of students to create programs to move free-flying robots known as Astrobees on the International Space Station. The competition presents tasks/obstacles for high school and college students to solve using the space station’s Kibo module as a game space. Preliminary rounds will be held in multiple countries using ground-based simulations. Registration for the U.S. Preliminary Round, conducted by NASA, is open now.

NASA Space Waste Revolution Challenge
Application Deadline: May 16
https://myumi.ch/JPrGq
As we venture farther into space and establish a long-term presence, managing waste becomes critical. Current methods of discarding or burning waste upon re-entry are not sustainable for lunar missions. NASA is seeking contributors for a groundbreaking research initiative focused on recycling polymer waste in space environments. Selected participants, working individually or in teams, will research cutting-edge recycling technologies, analyze market landscapes, and develop recommendations for NASA’s space sustainability initiatives.

Dragonfly Student and Early Career Investigator Program
Application Deadline: June 9
https://myumi.ch/Mkrbe
Set to launch in 2028, NASA’s Dragonfly mission will send a rotorcraft lander to explore a variety of locations on Saturn’s moon Titan. Graduate students are invited to apply for a two-year term to work with Dragonfly mission team members to conduct Titan research, help formulate Dragonfly mission science and operations plans, or assist in the development of instrumentation, hardware, or testing. Applicants must be U.S. citizens pursuing a master’s or doctoral degree in the physical sciences, biological sciences, computer sciences, mathematics, or engineering. Undergraduate STEM students who will be graduating with bachelor’s degrees in May 2025 are also eligible to apply, provided that they will be enrolled in STEM graduate programs in fall 2025.

MSU Science Festival
April 1st-30th, 2025
https://myumi.ch/dAD8x
Save the date! The MSU Science Festival is back again for the 13th year on April 1st-30th. Learn more, view the full schedule and register students today.

Nature Awaits!
https://myumi.ch/G2kW7
Calling all fourth-grade classrooms! Nature Awaits offers a new opportunity for children to experience Michigan’s outdoors. All fourth-grade classrooms are eligible for a FREE experiential field trip to select state parks to support their classroom learning! Each environmental education experience will be facilitated by trained educators focused on meeting 4th grade curriculum standards including science, social studies, physical fitness and language arts through experiential learning outdoors. Guided by environmental literacy best practices, the program aims to make sure Michigan’s kids learn that our state parks are for everyone, and that a lifetime of spending time outdoors is good for our physical and mental health.

Farm Science Van Program
https://myumi.ch/g3RjA
As the 24-25 school year comes to an end, we would like to remind you we are currently accepting reservations for the 25-26 school year! We now have 2 FARM Science Labs in our fleet and the NEW FARM Science Van program.
The FARM Science Lab: Classes come out to the mobile learning lab. K-5 NGSS aligned lessons. 5-8 classroom lessons in a day. 2-day MINIMUM. $500/day with a $100 generator fee.
The Farm Science Van: Educators go into classrooms or is in a designated room within the school. K-5 NGSS aligned lessons, same as what is offered in the Labs. 5-8 classroom lessons in a day. 1-day MINIMUM. $375/day

Create Virtual Field Trips: Infiniscope Self-Paced Training Modules
Available Now
https://myumi.ch/Z23kG
Tour It puts the power of immersive virtual field trips in your hands. Whether you’re an experienced educator or just beginning your journey, Tour, It enables you to create engaging, interactive virtual tours that bring the power of place-based learning to your classroom.

Federal Aviation Administration Airport Design Challenge
Registration Open Now
https://myumi.ch/xw7P1
The Airport Design Challenge (ADC) is an interactive learning and collaboration opportunity for students in grades K-12. The FAA Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Aviation and Space Education (STEM AVSED) Program organizes and sponsors this exciting challenge.

New Activity Guide: Launch Into Math
https://myumi.ch/e3zAA
Get ready to go on a math adventure with NASA’s Artemis missions!
Launch Into Math is a collection of eight math exercises for students ages 11 and up. The activity topics range from ratios to coordinate planes to medians and interquartile ranges, all with an out-of-this-world twist. Meet members of the Artemis team and find out how they use math to push the boundaries of space exploration with the Space Launch System rocket, the Orion capsule, and other important components of our missions to return to the Moon.

New Storybook: Our Friend Orion
https://myumi.ch/JPpW8
Sometimes you need a friend to support you on your greatest missions! The new “Our Friend Orion” storybook, written by Lane Polak and illustrated by Heather Rose Legge-Click, introduces young explorers ages 3 to 8 to the spacecraft that will carry Artemis astronauts to the Moon. A companion to the “Hooray for SLS!” storybook about the Space Launch System rocket, this pair of digital books illustrates the incredible bond that Orion and SLS share.

Genes in Space
Applications due April 14, 2025
https://myumi.ch/wyRDJ
A free experimental design competition where students in grades 7-12 propose research projects to be carried out in space. While one winner has their experiment carried out aboard the International Space Station, all contestants learn about current space biology research and engage in the scientific process as they design their experiments.

World Quantum Day
Monday, April 14th
https://myumi.ch/NrkMW
On Monday, April 14, World Quantum Day is celebrated to promote the understanding of quantum science and technology. NASA uses quantum technology to support research and development across the agency. Did you know that quantum physics touches our lives every day? It’s the branch of science that investigates the nature of energy and matter – like the activity happening inside atoms – in order to make sense of the smallest things in nature. Learn about the basics of quantum and how NASA plans to use this technology to communicate in space through our Quantum 101 Comic. Looking for more ways to make a STEM connection to quantum? Test your binary coding skills with the Quantum Code Crunchers activity.

Eye on the Future Teen Video Contest
Entry Deadline: Sunday, April 20
https://myumi.ch/E8xeM
U.S. high school students, show us your science for a chance to win $2,000 cash and a trip to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland. But hurry—this year’s contest ends on April 20, 2025.

Smithsonian Exploring Space Lecture: The Search for Mars’ Oceans
Event Date: Wednesday, April 23, at 8 p.m. EDT
https://myumi.ch/5kJAz
Was Mars once covered in oceans? If so, where did they go? Like many scientific endeavors, understanding the history of water on Mars is a team effort, and Gina DiBraccio and Charles Malespin from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center’s research on the topic frequently requires many perspectives and points of view. In this lecture they will join together to talk about water on Mars from top to bottom. DiBraccio will highlight how Mars’ ocean escaped into space through the atmosphere, and Malespin will tell us all about how Mars’ rovers have deepened our understanding of the fate of oceans on Mars from the ground. Gina DiBraccio is the deputy director of the Heliophysics Science Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Her research focuses on magnetospheric physics and solar wind-planetary interactions for both intrinsic and induced planetary magnetospheres throughout the Solar System. Charles Malespin is the chief of the Planetary Environments Lab and serves as the principal investigator for the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite currently on the Curiosity rover in Gale Crater, Mars. This lecture series is made possible by the generous support of Aerojet Rocketdyne: An L3Harris Technologies Company and United Launch Alliance.

Spring 2025 Challenge: GROWING YOUR COMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Entry must be submitted by: May 2nd, 2025, 11:59pm
https://myumi.ch/15Am7
The Purple Plow engages students in creating solutions for real-world, complex issues related to agriculture. Often, we think of individuals that are living with food insecurity to be homeless or easy to identify, yet they could be your neighbor or even a classmate. Are you ready to help solve this problem?

2025 Kibo Robot Programming Challenge – Call for U.S. Teams
Registration Deadline: May 12
https://myumi.ch/y1rWX
The Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Kibo-RPC) – hosted by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) – invites teams of students to create programs to move free-flying robots known as Astrobees on the International Space Station. The competition presents tasks/obstacles for high school and college students to solve using the space station’s Kibo module as a game space. Preliminary rounds will be held in multiple countries using ground-based simulations. Registration for the U.S. Preliminary Round, conducted by NASA, is open now.

Summer 2025 GeneLab for High Schools Program
Application Deadline: Thursday, May 15
Program Dates: June 2 – Aug. 29
https://myumi.ch/QwNpD
NASA’s GeneLab for High Schools (GL4HS) program offers 12 weeks of on-demand training sponsored by NASA’s Ames Research Center. GL4HS immerses students in space life sciences with a specific focus on computational biology and omics-based bioinformatics research, the science of collecting and analyzing complex biological data such as genetic codes.

Moon Mascot: NASA Artemis II ZGI Design Challenge
Submissions are due May 27
https://myumi.ch/n1k3A
Calling all designers! This is your opportunity to design the zero gravity indicator that will fly around the Moon during the Artemis II mission. This small plush object will travel inside the Orion capsule with the Artemis II astronauts to indicate when the spacecraft reaches microgravity. Submissions must include drawings or renderings of the object, along with a short description of the design. When fabricated, designs must fit into a 6” x 6” x 6” (15.25 cm x 15.25 cm x 15.25 cm) box and not exceed 0.75 lbs. (0.34 kg).

Federal Aviation Administration Airport Design Challenge
Entries due 8/1
https://myumi.ch/P3n8n
The Airport Design Challenge (ADC) is an interactive learning and collaboration opportunity for students in grades K-12. The FAA Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Aviation and Space Education (STEM AVSED) Program organizes and sponsors this exciting challenge.

MSU Science Festival
April 1st-30th, 2025
https://myumi.ch/dAD8x
Save the date! The MSU Science Festival is back again for the 13th year on April 1st-30th. Learn more, view the full schedule and register students today.

Adopt A Cow! A year-long FREE experience in your classroom
https://myumi.ch/kPx3Q
Forget the guinea pig. How about adopting a 100-pound dairy calf for your classroom mascot by joining the Adopt A Cow program? Don’t worry about finding a pen big enough to hold her. The photos and stories we’ll send you about her life on the farm will make her “come alive” for your students! The best part? It is FREE!

Wallops Rocket Academy for Teachers (WRATS)
Application Deadline: Friday, April 18
Workshop Dates: Aug. 11-15
https://myumi.ch/mR74E
NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia invites high school instructors (formal, informal, homeschool) to a weeklong, hands-on workshop to reinforce STEM concepts through rocketry. Participants will build and launch a variety of model rockets and learn about the dynamics of a launch and safe flight operations from NASA technical experts. An honorarium will be provided upon completion of the workshop.
Applicants must be U.S. citizens.

2025 IDEAS Educator Workshop
Workshop: July 7 – 10, 2025
Registration Deadline: May 1, 2025
https://myumi.ch/qZGkd
Registration is now open for the summer 2025 “IDEAS” Educator Workshop! The IDEAS Team is comprised of the South Carolina Space Grant Consortium (SCSGC), North Carolina Space Grant Consortium (NCSGC), and the North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC). This hands-on workshop is funded by NASA’s National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. The overall goal of this workshop is to share new teaching strategies in support of different learning modalities in NASA and STEM lessons and activities for both K-12 and informal education settings. The 2025 workshop will focus on new and innovative technologies to integrate into the classroom. Participants will be eligible to earn two Professional Development credits (30 hours) through the University of North Dakota. Interested educators are highly encouraged to contact their local Space Grant Consortium to inquire about potential funding sponsorship to attend the workshop. Attendance is limited to 30 participants.

Contact Opportunity: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS)
Proposal Deadline: Friday, May 23
https://myumi.ch/pV7D1
On Monday, April 7, ARISS will begin accepting proposals from U.S. schools, museums and community youth organizations (working individually or together) to host an amateur radio contact with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station between January 1 and June 30, 2026. To maximize these events, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed STEM engagement plan. Radio contacts are approximately 10 minutes.

NASA Space Apps Challenge Seeks Local Leads for 2025 Hackathon
Application Deadline: June 1
https://myumi.ch/G2z31
The NASA Space Apps Challenge is in search of local leads for this year’s hackathon taking place October 4-5. Local leads work alongside the NASA Space Apps global organizing team to organize the hackathon in their own city or town. This includes planning a virtual or in-person local event, supporting local participants, and coordinating local collaborators, judges, and community members.