Debbie V. Nguyen
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281/483-5111



Report #J05-002

NASA PLANS UNIQUE SPACE STATION PARTNERSHIP WITH SEVEN UNIVERSITIES

Students and faculty at seven universities nationwide will soon have
out-of-this-world opportunities as they become NASA partners working with
the International Space Station.

NASA has awarded grants to seven universities to work with the International
Space Station Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. Through this
partnership, faculty and students will be exposed to the Station's technical
data and expertise, which can be used for classroom endeavors. In exchange,
NASA will reap benefits from the studies conducted and assistance provided
by those students and faculty.

"This partnership truly seeks to inspire the next generation of
explorers as only NASA can," said Dennis Stone, ISS Engineering
Outreach Project Manager. "The faculty and students will get real
experience with human space flight research and operations, and NASA will
benefit from their creative thinking and enthusiasm."

The seven universities selected for grants a Georgia Institute of
Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Montana State University,
Purdue University, University of Alabama-Huntsville, University of
Mississippi and University of Wyoming.

The grant opportunity was announced by NASA through the 2004 Aerospace
Workforce Development Competition Announcement distributed to the National
Space Grant College and Fellowship Program network of universities.

Completion of the Station to enable research on long-term human life and
work in space is a crucial step in returning humans to the Moon, journeying
to Mars and beyond as outlined in the Vision for Space Exploration. The
Station's current residents, Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao and Flight
Engineer Salizhan Sharipov, are two-thirds of the way through their
six-month residency aboard the 200-ton-plus orbiting outpost. The Station
has been crewed 24 hours a day, seven days a week since 2000.

For more information about the International Space Station, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov


###


--
--------------

Jacques :-)

www.spacepatches.info