EDITOR’S NOTE: Due to weather issues affecting the condition of the field at Bragg Farms, the 2012-13 Student Launch Projects challenge scheduled for Saturday, April 20, has now been moved to Sunday, April 21. Launches will begin at 7:30 a.m. CDT — weather permitting — at Bragg Farms in Toney, Ala.
What: Members of the news media and public are invited to watch live, online coverage of the 2012-13 NASA Student Launch Projects “launchfest,” the agency’s annual engineering and science challenge for students across the country. On Sunday, April 21, more than 600 students, representing 56 middle schools, high schools, colleges and universities in 26 states, will launch sophisticated rockets of their own design — complete with working science payloads — into the skies over North Alabama.
NASA will provide live coverage of the event on the social Web service UStream, complete with embedded Twitter feed: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nasa-msfc
Launch enthusiasts also may keep up with real-time flight data — including how close each team comes to the goal altitude of 1 mile high — and post-launch awards show results via the direct Twitter feed at: https://twitter.com/SLI_1MILEHIGH
The Academic Affairs Office, part of the Office of Human Capital at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages the rocketry challenge. ATK Aerospace Group of Magna, Utah, is providing corporate sponsorship. The National Association of Rocketry will provide technical review and launch support. Bragg Farms has hosted the launch challenge since 2008.
When: Launches are set to begin April 21 at Bragg Farms in Toney, Ala. — weather permitting — at 7:30 a.m. CDT. The awards ceremony will be held Saturday, April 20, at 6:30 p.m. CDT.
News media interested in covering the event should contact Angela Storey in the Marshall Public and Employee Communications Office at 256-714-4370 no later than noon CDT Friday, April 19.
For more information about Student Launch Projects, visit: http://education.msfc.nasa.gov/slp
For more information about NASA Education initiatives, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/education
