Science Activation Highlights

These highlights illustrate the range of activities conducted by the Science Activation collaborative network that reach learners of all ages using NASA Science-funded experts, content, or authentic experiences.

Screenshot of the webpage for My NASA Data: Solar Eclipse.

My NASA Data Milestones: Eclipsed by the Eclipse!

2 min read

The My NASA Data (MND) project supports grades 3rd through 12th-grade students and teachers across the globe in analyzing and interpreting NASA mission data. MND provides student and teacher materials, including teacher-facing lesson plans, student-facing lessons and interactives, and NASA…

Article2 weeks ago
Photo of participants at the 2024 U.S. GLOBE Southeast Student Research Symposium standing in front of the Apollo Saturn V rocket.

Students Present GLOBE Research at INFINITY Science Center with NASA ASTRO CAMP Community Partners Team

2 min read

Nineteen 5th-12th-grade student scientists gathered on 5 and 6 April, 2024 at the INFINITY Science Center in Pearlington, Mississippi for the U.S. GLOBE Southeast Student Research Symposium. The students traveled to the symposium with educators and chaperones from Alabama, Louisiana,…

Article3 weeks ago
Lori Rubino-Hare guides a group of 20 out-of-school-time educators sitting in small groups to examine PLANETS printed materials at the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Houston STEAM lab.

It Takes a Village: Meaningful Collaborations to Broaden Participation in STEM

3 min read

The NASA Science Activation Program’s Planetary Learning Advancing the Nexus of Engineering, Technology, and Science (PLANETS) project team, led by Northern Arizona University, Engineering is Elementary, United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology, and WestEd, develops planetary science and engineering curricula…

Article1 month ago
The image is centered on a group of three high-school students with a large television camera in the foreground. The person responsible for the television camera is hidden by the camera itself, but that person's arm is seen extending out from behind the camera holding a microphone in front of the three students. The student in the center of the group of students is speaking into the microphone. She is holding a colorful sculpture of a seahorse that is about 2 feet long and is made of rope and other found plastics, reflecting the topic of their student research on ocean plastics. The other two students are facing and listening to the one who is speaking. In the background of the image, taped to the wall behind the group of students, is a small white poster with writing and a graph.

Findings from the Field: Students and Professionals Connect at Research Symposium

2 min read

On March 18, 2024, 65 middle and high school scientists gathered at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) in Portland, Maine to share their science research projects with one another and with professional scientists from GMRI, Mount Washington Observatory…

Article1 month ago
A classroom photo with seated children focused on their teacher standing at the front of the room. The walls are filled with colorful projects, artwork and decorations.

8 Must-Have NASA Resources for Science Teachers in 2024

3 min read

No one can bring the excitement of Earth and space science to the classroom like NASA!  Launch your lessons to the next level with these eight essential resources for K-12 teachers: Experience the Total Solar Eclipse  Whether you’re on or…

Article2 months ago
Photo of SEES intern, Londyn Franklin, floating and smling in her flightt suit while holding a stuffed animal. She is on an airplane during zero-g session. Other people in flight suits float, stand, and smile in the background, holding various items like stuffed animals. One person holds a megaphone.

Four STEM Enhancement in Earth Science Interns Conduct Research in Microgravity

2 min read

The STEM Enhancement in Earth Science (SEES) Summer Intern Program is a nationally competitive STEM program for high school students. The program provides selected students with exposure to Earth and Space research. Interns learn how to interpret NASA satellite data…

Article2 months ago
Astronaut Megan McArthur is smiling and pointing to her phone. The screen of her phone shows badges in the GLOBE Observer app.

Earn Awards for Doing NASA Science with GLOBE Observer

2 min read

GLOBE Observer, the mobile app of the Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program , gives anyone who wants to (in 120+ GLOBE countries) the opportunity to do NASA science by making environmental observations that complement NASA…

Article2 months ago
Diagram showing some of the people and partners who participate in a STEM learning ecosystem.

Introduction to STEM Learning Ecosystems: Video Series

2 min read

STEM learning ecosystems are intentionally designed, community-wide partnerships that enable people to actively participate in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) throughout their lifetimes. These partnerships draw on expertise and resources across a community to create equitable access for learners…

Article2 months ago
The image shows a wide view of hotel ballroom. About ten circular tables covered in white linen tablecloths are set up around the ballroom. On each table are a variety of craft and science materials, suggesting people previously were seated at the tables doing various activities. Most of the tables are clustered at the front right of the image, suggesting they were moved to create room for the activity that is the focus of the picture. At the front left of the image, in the open space created by clustering the tables, about 24 plastic red, blue, a nd white cones are regularly spaced in identical columns -- two red, then two white, then two blue cones. In the left foreground is a single presenter, actively gesturing at the grid of cones on the floor. In the distance, at the back of the image, is a large semi-circle of adults standing side-by-side facing the presenter and the grid of cones.

Maine Educators Re-Energized After Gathering

2 min read

On February 28-29, 2024, 57 teachers, librarians, and out-of-school educators gathered for a two-day retreat organized and supported by members of the NASA Science Activation Program’s Learning Ecosystems Northeast project team. Based at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI),…

Article2 months ago
A group of people in a room with two presenters demonstrating how the Moon and Sun casts a small shadow on the Earth, resulting in an eclipse.

Eclipse Ambassadors off the Path: Reaching Underrepresented Audiences

2 min read

The NASA Science Activation Program’s “Eclipse Ambassadors Off the Path” project is a nationwide initiative that set out in September 2022 to prepare 500 communities on and off the central paths of the back-to-back solar eclipses in 2023 and 2024…

Article2 months ago