NASA will award nearly $2.4 million to universities as part of the Artemis Student Challenges, a bold new initiative to inspire the next generation – the Artemis Generation. The universities receiving awards will use the grants to advance the quality, relevance and overall reach of opportunities to engage students as NASA takes the first step in the next era of exploration.

Each of these opportunities will build foundational knowledge and introduce students to topics and technologies critical to the success of the agency’s Artemis program, which will land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024 using innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before. Through the Artemis Student Challenges students will test and strengthen their skills for future mission planning and crewed space missions to other worlds. Capitalizing on the momentum of the Artemis program, the Artemis Student Challenges will be led by NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, with cost-share support from four agency departments. Collectively, these new awards will connect Artemis Generation students to the science, technology and missions of Artemis through authentic, mission-driven experiences and learning opportunities.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of two universities selected for Artemis Teaching and Resource Availability Awards:

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign – $200,000: The University will develop learning resources, enabling self-study of topics and technologies directly relevant to Artemis, such as habitats, robotics precursor missions, and exploration spacecraft. Products will be disseminated via self-study online learning. This team includes a co-investigator from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, and a broad partnership of contributors spanning the state of Illinois. In addition, students from seven additional states – Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin – are expected to participate in the initial evaluation of the learning resources.

University of Alabama, Huntsville – $200,000: The university will develop resources and materials related to Artemis Trajectory Design and Mission Analysis, which will enable spacecraft to transfer from Earth orbit to Earth-Lunar orbit and later onto Mars through the Gateway. The products will be available via a self-study, online learning platform. This team includes co-investigators from Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama; Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania; and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona.

Four other universities have also been selected for Artemis awards.

Artemis Core Technology Awards:  University of Boulder, Colorado and University of Hawai’i, Honolulu

Artemis Student Challenge Awards:  University of California, San Diego and University of Washington, Seattle.

For more information about opportunities for students to get involved with Artemis, visit:

https://stem.nasa.gov/artemis 

For more information about the National Space Grant and Fellowship Program, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/stem/spacegrant/home

This article is taken from a NASA press release:

https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-funds-artemis-student-challenges-to-inspire-space-exploration