Center for NASA Research and Technology http://www.cnrt.scsu.edu

September 1, 2001 Dear Colleagues: The following pages provide an overview of the numerous projects managed by South Carolina State University (SCSU) and funded by NASA during the past summer. One will find a wide range and diversity of activities including SCSU faculty research projects, undergraduate research at SCSU and national laboratories, a middle-school space science camp and a weeklong workshop for in-service teachers. The fields of science, mathematics and engineering are all represented in these activities with ties to NASA’s Enterprises in Space Science and Earth Science. We wish to thank everyone who contributed to these activities. While the list of individuals involved is too lengthy to include, we would like to acknowledge the generous support of a number of organizations and institutions. The SCSU Division of Academic Affairs, the Office of Sponsored Programs, the School of Engineering Technology and Sciences (SETS) and the departments within SETS have been essential to the success of these activities through their financial support and by providing office and laboratory space as well as other resources. Our many K-12 schools, university partners, government laboratories and private collaborators are listed under the individual projects. Our thanks also go to NASA for their financial and technical support which was necessary in order to carry out these activities. The SCSU NASA awards include: (1) the MU-SPIN NRTS award NCC 5-534, (2) the MURED PAIR award NCC 5-454, (3) the Office of Space Science award NAG 5-10145; and, (4) a subcontract from Tennessee State University (TSU) under their MURED-URC award NCCW-0085.

We also would like to acknowledge the previous 5-year awards from TSU and the MU-SPIN NRTS award, NCC 5-116, which provided the foundation on which we were able to build the current SCSU NASA Center for Research and Technology. Their many years of support made it possible for us to develop our technical capability to the point where we could realistically participate in other competitive programs.

Sincerely, Donald K. Walter Principle Investigator

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH INSTITUTE IN ASTROPHYSICS (URIA)

Summer 2001 FUNDED BY: NASA’s Minority University SPace Interdisciplinary Network (MU-SPIN) under Cooperative Agreement NCC 5-534, and under a subcontract from Tennessee State University through its NASA URC award NCCW- 0085 PARTICIPANTS: 10 undergraduate students and 5 college faculty members PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: South Carolina State University (SCSU), Elizabeth City State University, the University of the Virgin Islands, Francis Marion University, and the University of South Carolina

Program Summary The URIA program is an eight-week, residential course of study in astrophysics at SCSU for underrepresented minority students. Since 1998 a total of 22 students have participated in the program with 9 having spent a second or even a third summer in the program. The students course of study included a number of astrophysical and computer related topics and experiences. Introductory training in UNIX on SUN workstations and X-terminals were presented as well as training on several UNIX and PC based image processing applications. Astronomical topics presented during the summer included an overview of the universe, instrumentation, the Hubble Space Telescope and other space-based observatories, and in-depth coverage of selected topics including stellar, galactic and extragalactic astronomy, and cosmology. Hands-on experience was also gained in astronomical image processing that included reduction of CCD data using PC-based image processing software, use of professional astronomical image processing software (IRAF), and analysis of actual CCD imagery from the ground and the Hubble Space Telescope. This summer’s students formed four teams, each under the guidance of a program faculty member to study: 1) Wavelet Applications in Image Processing, 2) Clustering of Galaxies, 3) Quasar Images from the Hubble Space Telescope, and 4) Blazar Photometry. Each student team will produce a research paper and display a poster at the annual MU-SPIN conference.

2001 URIA students are shown here in the MU-SPIN supported computer lab where they have access to Pentium III PC computers running the latest software applications as well as astronomical imaging programs. In addition to PCs, there are several UNIX servers and X-terminals available for astrophysical research. The computer lab also includes a videoconference center.

With fellow URIA students in the background, Katrina Banks, gives a presentation on college life and career choices to a group of middle school students attending an annual camp supported by CNRT and directed by CNRT Program Coordinator, Alice Baker.

As during the previous two summers, the URIA students toured several world famous observatories in Arizona and New Mexico. Here students and faculty gather around the concrete mirror blank for the 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona.

URIA student Ramatoulie Bah peers though the telescope at the Flandrau Science Center on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson during the Summer 2001 URIA tour.

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH PROGRAM IN ASTROPHYSICS (URPA)

Summer 2001 FUNDED BY: NASA’s Office of Space Science under NAG 5-10145 and NASA’s Minority University SPace Interdisciplinary Network (MU-SPIN) under NCC 5-534 PARTICIPANTS: 5 undergraduate students PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: South Carolina State University (SCSU), Goddard Space Flight Center, Lawrence-Livermore National Laboratory, and Kitt Peak National Observatory

Program Summary The URPA program at SCSU provides undergraduates who have some prior experience with space science research the opportunity to engage in cutting-edge space science research at premier astrophysical facilities throughout the US. This year 5 undergraduate students participated in the program from minority institutions around the country. Erica Lamar and Chad Williams from SCSU worked at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Lamar was involved with the development of a new generation of CCDs and Williams was part of the MACHO Project. Vincent Davis of Elizabeth City State University and Nelvin Thomas, a recent graduate in Mathematics from the University of the Virgin Islands, searched the night skies for asteroids as part of a collaboration between SCSU and the Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona. Mayra Tovar, a recent graduate in Mathematics from California State University, Northridge worked with a team of scientists conducting solar research at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Three of the five URPA participants (Lamar, Davis and Thomas), have also spent past summers in SCSU’s Undergraduate Research Institute in Astrophysics program.

URPA student, Erica Lamar, at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

URPA student, Chad Williams, second from right, with other MACHO project members at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

The primary aim of the MACHO Project is to test the hypothesis that a significant fraction of the dark matter in the halo of the Milky Way is made up of objects like brown dwarfs or planets. These objects have come to be known as MACHOs, for MAssive Compact Halo Objects.

URPA student, Mayra Tovar, making a presentation at the Goddard Space Flight Center.

News Media Tip - July 23, 2001

Students Join Amateur in Search for Space Rocks How would you go about scanning the night sky in search of asteroids? Two students are finding out first hand that discovering one of the elusive space rocks requires a combination of advanced telescope technology and patience.

Courtesy of a partnership between the summer REU program at NSF’s National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) and a similar summer program at NASA, the students--Nelvin Thomas, a recent graduate of the University of the Virgin Islands, and Vincent Davis, a junior at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina--are scanning the sky for 10 weeks from the home observatory of an amateur astronomer and employee of the NSF National Solar Observatory (NSO).

NSO's Roy Tucker (center) oversees Vincent Davis' and Nelvin Thomas' search for asteroids

in his backyard observatory.

Thomas and Davis were selected for the NASA Undergraduate Research Program in Astrophysics managed by South Carolina State University (SCSU). SCSU and the students' home institutions are historically black colleges that are working with NASA to increase the number of minority students who attend graduate school in space science-related fields. Through networking among teachers and astronomers, NSO staffer Roy Tucker offered to work with the students on a nighttime asteroid project. In the daytime, Tucker is an instrumentation engineer for the solar observatory’s Global Oscillation Network, which studies surface waves on the sun.

The students are using three 14-inch telescopes outfitted with CCD cameras in Tucker's backyard observatory west of Tucson, Ariz. Instead of tracking the sky like most telescopes, these three are bolted to their mounts and the rotation of the earth does the pointing for them. Multiple images can detect a hint of a moving object against the relatively "stationary" background stars. [Doug Isbell, NOAO, 520/318-8214]

Partnership Awards for the Integration of Research (PAIR)

Summer 2001 FUNDED BY: : NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Division (MURED) under Cooperative Agreement NCC 5-454 PARTICIPANTS: 12 undergraduate students and 8 college faculty members PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: South Carolina State University (SCSU), Goddard Space Flight Center, National Instruments, the University of the Virgin Islands, and the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI)

Program Summary During the winter of 2000, SCSU was one of three universities in the nation selected to receive a PAIR award. Recognizing the importance of integrating current and emerging research into the undergraduate experience, the SCSU PAIR award was used to establish the Curriculum Enhancement through Space Science Research (CESSR) program. CESSR links three academic departments: Physical Sciences, Industrial and Electrical Engineering Technology, and Mathematics and Computer Science through the application of space science research. In partnership with the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) in Rosman, NC, four teams of three SCSU students under the direction of faculty mentors are focusing on the upgrade of and the remote operations of PARI’s 4.6-meter radio telescope (a.k.a., Smiley). One team is developing a web interface for the remote control of Smiley. Another team is charged with developing the robotic capabilities of Smiley. A third team is creating a web accessible database and search engine for data derived from Smiley. The fourth team is building a temperature control for Smiley and will analyze the scientific data from the radio telescope. A suite of training workshops were held this summer for the PAIR students and faculty. This included five days of training in the use of LabView, an industry-standard software program. Additional workshops included an overview of astrophysics, training in the use of the STARLAB portable planetarium, and innovative learning methods taught through the use of Concept Maps.

Top: PAIR students team (left to right: Guy Mentor, Leah Cayton and Tia Sweat) at the controls of the 85-foot dish at PARI. Middle: PAIR student, Leah Cayton, presenting research results to PARI staff. Bottom: Demonstration of a control system by PARI staff to SCSU faculty members (right three, standing) Nikunja Swain, James Payne and Hasanul Basher.

Top: Overview of PARI campus. Smiley is the small dish located to the left and the 85-foot dish is located in top center of the photograph. Middle: PAIR student team and faculty member Dr. James Payne (center foreground) get a close up view of Smiley from the roof of the adjacent building. Bottom: Close up view of control system.

SOLAR ECLIPSE WEBCAST SOUTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY

CENTER FOR NASA RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY (CNRT) COMPUTER LAB

June 21, 2001 FUNDED BY: NASA’s Minority University SPace Interdisciplinary Network (MU-SPIN) under NCC 5-534 PARTICIPANTS: 15 undergraduate students, 2 college faculty members, 3 college staff members, and 1 pre-college student PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: South Carolina State University Center for NASA Research and Technology

Program Summary The CNRT Computer Lab was just one of 150 institutions throughout the US, and only one of three in the state of South Carolina, that hosted the webcast of the solar eclipse from Zambia in southern Africa. Since the total solar eclipse was visible in the southern hemisphere the webcast of this event allowed viewers throughout the world to see the eclipse as it occurred. Flyers announcing the event were produced and distributed on campus. Coffee and other breakfast refreshments were made available to the attendees. A total of 21 people attended the webcast. Support of webcasting activities is part of a new MU-SPIN initiative. Future SCSU involvement in this area will include webcasting of public observing nights and transient astronomical events such as the passing of a bright comet.

SPACE SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ACADEMY ONE

June 4–15, 2001

FUNDED BY: NASA’s Minority University SPace Interdisciplinary Network (MU-SPIN) Cooperative Agreement NCC 5-534 PARTICIPANTS: 20 middle school students, 1 high school student, 5 in-service teachers (including a Master Teacher), and 1 pre-service teacher PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: South Carolina State University, Bowman Middle-High School, Brookdale Middle School, Carver-Edisto Middle School, Denmark-Olar Middle School, Felton Laboratory School, Howard Middle School, Orangeburg Preparatory School, Rivers Middle School (Charleston), and William J. Clark Middle School

Program Summary

The SCSU Center for NASA Research and Technology, (CNRT) offered a summer program for science teachers and middle school students in grades 7-9. The Academy was two weeks for teachers and eight days for students. The curriculum was planned according to the South Carolina Curriculum Standards for science, which included incorporating the use of computer technology. The Academy’s focus was designed to motivate an interest in space science to minorities, particularly African Americans. In addition, a two-day workshop was held for teachers of the Academy. The program’s theme was Exploring the Sun and the Planets. During the two-week program, four topics were covered: The Solar System, The Sun, Inside Saturn, and Telescopes. Dr. Beth Brown, a NASA scientist, in a videoconference, and several speakers from the University presented information to the students about career opportunities in the sciences. Other activities included: rocket and comet building; hands-on in the chemistry, biology and physics labs; discussions on the sun; informal discussions with undergraduates about career choices; tours of the Stanback Planetarium and the Miller F. Whittaker Library. As a method of evaluation, a pretest and posttest were administered to the students. One of the highlights of the Academy was the culminating activity, which consisted of four teacher/student teams. Each team was responsible for presenting one of the aforementioned topics. The presentation included a web page demonstration, PowerPoint presentation, and two skits. Since the Academy’s inception in 1997, 82 students have participated.

Dr. Leroy Davis - President of SCSU and Space Science & Technology Academy One Participants.

Left: Dr. Beth Brown’s videoconference presentation focused on choosing the sciences as a career choice and her experiences as a female scientist while working for NASA. Right: Using balloons, strings, poles, and mathematical instruments to measure distance, the students and teachers constructed a scale model of the solar system.

Students and teachers made a model of the planet Saturn.

Students were involved in many hands-on activities and discussions. These activities included searching the Internet, using NASA CDs, visits to the planetarium, campus library, and presentations from various university faculty members, which included lab demonstrations in chemistry and physics.

Participants watched a video on the Solar System

at the Stanback Planetarium.

SPACE SCIENCE WORKSHOP FOR TEACHERS

July 23-27, 2001

FUNDED BY: NASA’s Office of Space Science NAG 5-10145 and NASA’s Minority University SPace Interdisciplinary Network (MU-SPIN) Cooperative Agreement NCC 5-534 PARTICIPANTS: 6 K-12 teachers, 2 science coordinators, 1 CNRT staff member, and 3 SCSU faculty members PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: South Carolina State University, Berkeley –Dorchester Hub, Brookdale Middle School, Carver-Edisto Middle School, Crestwood High, Fort Dorchester High, John Ford Middle, and Orangeburg-Wilkinson High

Program Summary The Space Science for Teachers Workshop was a one-week course designed to broaden the knowledge of the participants in astronomy and educational resources available in the field. It provided teachers in grades 6-12 with the content needed to address the SC standards related to astronomy and space science. In addition, the workshop acquainted teachers with the mission of NASA’s Office of Space Science’s educational materials. All materials and activities were correlated to the South Carolina Curriculum Standards. South Carolina State University’s physics and astronomy faculty members, along with guest speakers, provided an overview of the science content materials. Emphasis was placed on the stars, galaxies, and the universe outside of our solar system. The lead teacher demonstrated the hands-on activities. Participants took part in hands-on activities that included: designing comets, a scale of the solar system on the soccer field, rocket launching, and others. Each day the workshop covered one of the themes of NASA’s Office of Space Science: Search for Origins and Tools of Astronomy, Structure and Evolution of the Universe, Exploration of the Solar System, Sun-Earth Connection, and Planning & Implementation. A variety of media were introduced in the course, including printed materials, videotapes, CD’s, and Internet resources. As part of the course requirements, participants kept a daily journal of all activities, matching them with the State standards. Participants were also given an opportunity to summarize their Implementation plans for incorporating these resources and materials into their classroom instruction. The course will continue during the fall semester and participants will present their final plan.

Participants listened to a presentation and discussion on the tools of astronomy. Included were hands-on activities for making a spectroscope and an astrolabe.

Participants were given demonstrations and discussions on the stars and galaxies in the StarLab Portable Planetarium.

Participants made meteorites that

consisted of flour, pebbles, and water.

Participants made a scale of the solar system. The distance for

each planet was measured using toilet tissue.

Participants received hands-on experience in designing rockets. All missiles were successful in the rocket launching.

Participants were introduced to on-line NASA resources through web search assignments.

Participants simulated the creation of a radar contour map of Venus.

EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE ACADEMY

June 14-15, 2001 FUNDED BY: NASA’s Minority University SPace Interdisciplinary Network (MU-SPIN) NRTS Program, Cooperative Agreement NCC 5-533 to Elizabeth City State University and NCC 5-534 to South Carolina State University PARTICIPANTS: 2 teachers sponsored by the SCSU NRTS attended the Academy PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: SCSU NRTS, Bowman Middle-High School, and Edisto-Carver Middle School

Program Summary The SCSU Center for NASA Research & Technology sponsored two K-12 teachers to attend the Elizabeth City State University NRTS Earth System Science Academy in Elizabeth City, N.C. The Academy was designed to introduce educators, K-12, to the interdisciplinary approach for incorporating earth system science into their curriculum using generic wetland applications. The project focused on water-related issues and other environmental topics. The Great Dismal Swamp serves as an outdoor laboratory for the academy. It is a heavily forested area of land and water located in Virginia. The wetland Swamp Boardwalk Project is under the direction of Elizabeth City State University, which consists of a half-mile boardwalk and an observation tower. Its primary function is to provide access to a wetlands wilderness for use in research and educational activities. The two-day workshop included discussions, hands-on activities, and a tour of the Great Dismal Swamp Boardwalk Project and local waterways. A tour of the swamp provided a chance to view the OWLS Creek Salt Marsh and engage in discussions with museum educators about the ecosystem and some of its inhabitants, as well as, stream experiments using local waterways. Participants also located Internet resources concerning Earth System Science. The impact of the wetlands on the economies and environments were emphasized.

Above: The Great Dismal Swamp: Ms. Sandra Watts, (above left) Carver - Edisto Middle School and Ms. Katherine Mack, (above right) Bowman Middle - High School. Below: Participants conducted various exercises in their studies of local waterways.

Center for Automated Space Science (CASS)

Summer 2001

FUNDED BY: South Carolina State University (SCSU) is funded under a subcontract from the Tennessee State University (TSU) MURED-URC award NCCW-0085 PARTICIPANTS: 2 SCSU faculty members and 15 undergraduate students PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: SCSU, TSU, and Western Kentucky University

Program Summary CASS is a NASA-funded University Research Center at TSU, which has supported astronomical research and education at SCSU since 1995. During the spring and summer of 2001, 15 students and 2 faculty members at SCSU were funded to carry out projects which ranged from analysis of Hubble Space Telescope data to radio astronomy to developing computer-based materials for teaching cosmology to non-science students. The Explorers of the Universe Project is supported by CASS and hosts an interactive website at http://explorers.tsuniv.edu which was used by SCSU researchers to maintain electronic journals chronicling the progress of their work. Additionally, SCSU students used the metacognative tool known as the Concept Map to develop a better understanding of their work and the interrelationship of the many concepts related to their research. SCSU faculty members attended a workshop in Nashville in the fall of 2000 during which they received training in the use of the website and pedagogical basis of these resources. TSU maintains the Fairborn Observatory in southern Arizona which is the site of numerous automated photometric telescopes currently in operation. The 2-meter class Automated Spectroscopic Telescope and the 24-inch Automated Imaging Telescope are nearing completion at Fairborn, at which time SCSU faculty members and students will have access to these telescopes.

Above: The website logo from TSU’s Explorers of the Universe. Below: Several automated telescopes at the Fairborn Observatory.

Robotically Controlled Telescope (RCT)

Summer 2001 FUNDED BY: South Carolina State University (SCSU) provides cost-share funding and receives additional funds for RCT activities from the Office of Space Science award NAG 5-10145 and from NASA MU-SPIN under NCC 5-534 PARTICIPANTS: Currently 1 SCSU faculty member PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: SCSU, Western Kentucky University, Francis Marion University, and the Planetary Science Institute

Program Summary SCSU, Western Kentucky University, Francis Marion University, and the Planetary Science Institute are the charter members of the RCT Consortium which has taken over management of the 1.3-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory, approximately 50 miles west of Tucson, Arizona. The telescope is currently being refurbished in order to make it robotic. When fully operational, the telescope will be capable of observing in any one of three modes, manually on-site, remotely in real time over the Internet, or robotically without human intervention. Western Kentucky University took the lead in forming the consortium and acquiring the funding for the refurbishment of the telescope from the Office of Space Science. The other members and Western Kentucky are providing for the long-term upkeep of the facility through annual consortium membership fees, in-kind contributions, and additional funds from grants and other sources. SCSU is contributing to the facility through its annual membership fee, by providing partial support for a postdoctoral research assistant and by acquiring computer hardware and imaging filters. Students and faculty members from SCSU will use most of their share of the observing time to observe emission-line objects in our own galaxy as well as extragalactic systems including starburst galaxies.

SCSU physics majors Erica Lamar (left) and Ben Teasdel (right) stand outside the dome of the 1.3-meter telescope at Kitt Peak.

Inside the dome of the 1.3-meter telescope before the beginning of refurbishment of the facility. The large white circle to the right is for calibration of images taken by the CCD camera attached to the telescope.