Plants in Space Webcast: Chat Live With a NASA Moon Scientist

When will humans return to the moon? How will they get there? How will the astronauts live and work in reduced gravity? How does someone grow plants on the moon? Classroom students from across the country will have the chance to ask these questions and more during a series of live Web chats with experts from NASA's Constellation Program and Biological Sciences Offices.
The Challenger Center for Space Science Education in Alexandria, Va., and NASA Education are partnering to host two one-hour webcasts with Dr. Gary W. Stutte and Dr. Raymond M. Wheeler from Kennedy Spaceflight Center and John Gruener from the Johnson Space Center on October 23 and 30, 2007, at 2:00 p.m.ET. The webcasts are free and open to the public.

Classroom teachers may register at the Challenger Center Web site to chat with NASA's plant growth experts on how astronauts will use plants to provide food, oxygen, clean water and recycle waste during long-duration space missions on the moon. The conversations are in support of NASA’s Lunar Plant Growth Chamber design challenge for grades K-12.

In the NASA design challenge, elementary, middle and high school students research, design, build and evaluate lunar plant growth chambers using space-flown basil seeds. Students participate in the engineering design process, learn how to conduct a scientific experiment and can receive national recognition for their efforts on the Challenger Center Web site. To register for the webcasts visit: http://www.challenger.org/clc/sts118webcast.cfm