NASA Digest, Vol 39, Issue 11

August 29, 2016  MEDIA ADVISORY M16-105 Kentucky Students Talk Live with NASA Astronauts on Space Station Expedition 48 crew members Kate Rubins and Jeff Williams of NASA outfit spacesuits inside of the Quest airlock aboard the International Space Station in preparation for a spacewalk to install the first international docking adapter, the new docking port that will enable the future arrival of U.S. commercial crew spacecraft. Credits: NASA Students in Hyden, Kentucky, will have the opportunity to speak with two NASA astronauts currently living and working aboard the International Space Station at 1:10 p.m. EDT Wednesday, Aug. 31. The 20-minute, Earth-to-space call will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website. Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams and Flight Engineer Kate Rubins will answer questions from students of Leslie County High School at the Hazard Community & Technical College's (HCTC) School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music in Hyden. Rep. Hal Rogers of Kentucky will kick-off the event, joined by NASA astronaut Tim Kopra, who returned from the space station June 18. Media interested in covering the event should contact Danielle Smoot at danielle.smoot@mail.house.gov or 606-679-8346. The HCTC School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music is located at 108 Maple St. Williams launched to the space station March 18 and is scheduled to depart Sept. 6. Rubins launched July 6 and will return home in October. This in-flight education downlink is an integral component of the NASA Office of Education's efforts to improve science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teaching and learning in the United States. Linking students directly to astronauts aboard the space station through the Education Office's STEM on Station activity provides authentic, live experiences in space exploration, space study and the scientific components of space travel, while introducing the possibilities of life in space. For NASA TV streaming video, schedule and downlink information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv For more information, videos and lesson plans highlighting research on the International Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/education/stemonstation

August 29, 2016  MEDIA ADVISORY M16-104 NASA Holds Final Sample Return Robot Competition After five years of competition by more than 40 different teams from around the globe, NASA's Sample Return Robot Challenge has reached its final stage. The top seven teams will compete for the $1.36 million prize purse on the campus of Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Worcester, Massachusetts, Sept. 4-6. In this final round of the challenge, teams have up to two hours each to locate as many as 10 unknown samples that vary in size, shape, location and difficulty. The samples are classified as easy, intermediate and hard and are assigned corresponding point values. One team could win the entire prize purse, or multiple teams could share a percentage of the prize. The three-day event will conclude with an awards ceremony and press conference at 11:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday, Sept. 6, at the Quadrangle at WPI. WPI is located at 100 Institute Road in Worcester. Participants at the press conference will be: Congressman Jim McGovern of Massachusetts NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Laurie Leshin, president, WPI Dennis Andrucyk, deputy associate administrator, NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate Media who wish to attend any part of the event should contact Molly Porter at 256-544-3340 or molly.a.porter@nasa.gov. Qualifying teams for the final round are: Team Al - Toronto, Canada Alabama Astrobotics - Tuscaloosa, Alabama MAXed Out - Santa Clara, California Mind & Iron - Seattle, Washington Sirius - South Hadley, Massachusetts Survey - Los Angeles West Virginia University Mountaineers - Morgantown, West Virginia Prior to this final round of competition, the teams competed in Level 1, where robots had to return two known sample types but from an unknown location within 30 minutes without human control or the aid of Earth-based technologies, such as GPS or magnetic compassing. Since the challenge began in 2012, only seven teams have advanced to Level 2. The Sample Return Robot Challenge, part of NASA's Centennial Challenges Program, aims to encourage innovation in robotics technologies relevant to space exploration and broader applications that benefit life on Earth. This event brings together tech-savvy citizens, entrepreneurs, educators and students to demonstrate robots that can locate and collect geologic samples from a wide and varied landscape without human control and within a specified time.  NASA's Centennial Challenges program is part of the agency's Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD). STMD uses challenges to gather the best and brightest minds in academia, industry and government to drive innovation and enable solutions in important technology focus areas. WPI has hosted the Sample Return Robot Challenge since it began in 2012. The event will be streamed live at: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nasa-msfc For more information about the competition, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/robot