NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe And "Rocket Boy" Homer Hickam Join National Rocket Contest

9/20/2002

From: Janet Neale of the Aerospace Industries Association, 202-371-8548, neale@aia-aerospace.org

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20 -- The administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the original "Rocket Boy" will present awards to the winning high school teams in the "Team America Rocketry Challenge" May 10, 2003 at Great Meadow, The Plains, Virginia. NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe, and NASA Engineer and author Homer Hickam, whose book "Rocket Boys" inspired the movie "October Sky," will meet with students and teachers from the top 100 high school teams that will be attempting to launch model rockets carrying two raw eggs to 1500 feet. Sponsored by the Aerospace Industries Association and the National Rocketry Association, the model rocket contest is the first of its kind and is open to junior high and high school students in the U.S.

AIA will present the five winning student teams a shared prize pool of $59,000.

NASA has added additional prizes and another challenge to the contest, offering the top ten teams the opportunity to participate in the 2003-2004 NASA Student Launch Initiative. Three high school teams will be chosen to partner with the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center next year to design, build, and launch a reusable vehicle and payload to an altitude of 5,280 feet. Each team will receive a grant of up to $2,500 and a travel allowance for up to ten students/ faculty representatives to rocket launch facilities in Huntsville, Alabama. In addition, each of the top 25 teams' schools will be invited to send one faculty member on an all expenses paid trip to attend an advanced NASA rocketry workshop, meet with NASA engineers, and tour the Marshall Space Flight Center.

An orientation will be held at Great Meadow, The Plains, Virginia, on September 28, from 8 to 11 a.m. for students, parents and faculty to see model rocket demonstrations and learn more about the Team America Rocketry Challenge. Astronaut Dr. Eugene Trinh of the NASA Headquarters Office of Biological and Physical Research NASA will speak about his experiences as an astronaut and the education that equipped him to pursue that career.

Students, teachers, and parents are welcome to attend in groups or individually. Interested participants should contact Nicole Towle at 202-371-8428 or towle@aia-aerospace.org. For more information about AIA's Team America Rocket Challenge, visit www.rocketcontest.org. For more information on NASA Student Launch Initiative, visit http://educatin.msfc.naa.gov/docs/127.htm

Visit AIA's homepage at www.aia-aerospace.org