Announcements

Undergrad Brandon Vance will display research to Congress in Washington, D.C.

March 22, 2019

CBE major and Iowa Space Grant Consortium fellow researches creation of fuel for Mars missions

Like many other middle school students, Brandon Vance went on a class trip to Washington, D.C. Now, as an undergraduate university researcher, he will be headed back to the nation’s capital with a spot in the prestigious Posters on The Hill event with his name on it.

Vance with lab materials — Materials used with the reactor are at the ready in the Tessonnier Group lab where Vance conducts his research.

Each spring the Council on Undergraduate Research (a nationwide membership group that assists collegiate administrators, researchers, staff and students in support of undergraduate research) hosts this special poster session that allows undergraduate college students from around the nation to show off their research projects to members of Congress and their staffers. Many apply. Few are selected. Vance is among 60 students who will display, from more than 350 who filed the paperwork for this year’s event, which will take place April 28-30.

Vance is a senior in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering (CBE). His research project, “Designing Catalysts for the Direct Production of Methane Fuel on Mars,” is supported by a fellowship through the Iowa Space Grant Consortium, a NASA funded agency affiliated with the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Iowa State. His mentor is CBE associate professor Jean-Philippe Tessonnier and he’s an undergraduate member of Tessonnier’s research group. Vance is also a McNair Scholar at Iowa State, studying with assistance from the program that aids first generation, underrepresented, minority and low-income students in preparing for graduate school an attainment of a Ph.D.

Vance with reactor — Vance displays the reactor that is the centerpiece of the catalysis process that can be used on the surface of Mars to create rocket fuel.

Vance joined Tessonnier’s group in the fall of 2017 and began working on this project in the summer of 2018 with the Center for Biorenewable Chemicals (CBiRC) Research Experience for Undergraduates here at Iowa State. “I then applied for the Iowa Space Grant Consortium fellowship so I could keep working on the project,” Vance said.

NASA Journey to Mars graphic — NASA is planning manned missions to Mars, and Brandon Vance’s research will help fuel rockets that will get people back to Earth.

NASA plans to one day send manned missions to Mars. Getting crews and equipment to and from what will be the furthest destination that has ever been reached is no easy task. All sorts of challenges must be addressed. Vance’s research looks at the problem of how to fuel space craft for the return to Earth from Mars. “You can get a rocket to Mars, but it’s impossible to send enough fuel with them to get them back, Vance explained. “So it’s necessary to create the fuel to get back right there on the surface of Mars.”

Vance’s project examines how to turn carbon dioxide and hydrogen gas into methane for that fuel. It’s known as carbon dioxide methanation, and is done through a catalyzed process (one which enables a chemical reaction to proceed at a faster rate or under different conditions than would normally be possible). It’s a procedure used in industry to create synthetic, or substitute, natural gas. But the catalysts currently used can’t stand the high operating temperatures that wouldoccur with this particular process that would take place on Mars. Vance’s project addresses coming up with a catalyst to overcome this, using a computational model he designed himself, along with dong the vast majority of the experimental work.

Vance with research pposter — Vance is shown with the research poster he will display to members of Congress in Washington, D.C. in April.

The process involves using a reactor. But whereas most people picture a reactor as being a huge piece of equipment, the reactor Vance uses in this project is less than a foot in length. It was built by a former chemical engineering graduate student, Elspeth Petersen, who was part of Tessonnier’s research group and also focused on developing catalysis to produce methane for rocket fuel, in research that was also supported by the Iowa Space Grant Consortium.

The biggest obstacle to overcome was the computational model. He reported it took more than three months to develop a model that gave physically meaningful results and provided true insight into the catalytic system being studied. He has worked to develop models that demonstrate the effects of the detrimental heat transfer with the performance of the catalyst.

The Washington, D.C. event will top a list of opportunities that Vance has had to show his research in recent months, including an oral presentation at the McNair Heartland Research Conference in Kansas City, the 2018 Annual American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Student Conference in Pittsburgh, and the recent 2019 Iowa Space Grant Consortium Student Research Symposium at Drake University. He will also present his poster at the annual Research in the Capitol event April 1 at the Iowa Capitol.

Vance and Bohoroquez — Vance explains his research to Maria Bohorquez at an Iowa Space Grant Consortium symposium at Drake University. She is the campus coordinator for the event, which provides a practice for students displaying their research posters.

Vance plans to attend graduate school and plans to conduct research in biorenewables. He said he is honored to be in the spotlight with this research, but is quick to credit many mentors who have helped him achieve it – chief among them Tessonnier. “A very important part of my research is JP’s role in all this,” said Vance. “He’s letting me soak up the limelight, but he’s played a big part. Also my graduate student mentors Radhika Rao (now a postdoctoral researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory) and Elspeth Petersen (who is now a scientist working at the NASA Kennedy Space Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida), who designed the reactor for the project and went a long way in helping me understand the lab work and the world of research. People say I am doing great things, but it is all a function of the mentorship other people have given me.”

Said Tessonnier: “Brandon is an outstanding student who quickly became a real asset to our group and our NASA-sponsored project. He demonstrated how the thermal conductivity of the catalyst support impacts the selectivity of the CO2 methanation reaction, which is relevant to the production of fuel for manned Mars missions. I am glad that Brandon was selected for the Poster on the Hill conference. He will proudly represent our department and Iowa State.”

NASA App Development Challenge: Work with coding and app in support of space launch

March 6, 2019

Middle school and high school students interested in coding and app development have the opportunity to practice their skills via the exciting platform of a NASA mission.

In the “NASA App Development Challenge: Acsent Abort 2,” students work in teams to develop an app that visualizes three minutes of test data in support of the upcoming Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) launch scheduled for June 2019. The challenge begins with a live virtual kickoff event and presentation March 13.

Get more information in a document here or with the App Development Challenge web site here.

Still want to apply for Spaceflight Operations Workshop? Deadline’s been extended!

February 19, 2019

The deadline to apply for the 2019 Spaceflight Operations Workshop™ (SOW) in the Iowa State University Department of Aerospace Engineering has been extended to 11:59 p.m, Sunday, February 24.

Any collegiate student who would still like to be considered for this impactful experience in operational thinking and teamwork can apply here.

The workshop is coordinated by ISU Aerospace Engineering alumni and senior lecturers Clayton Anderson and Tomas

Students scuba diving — Scuba training and certification is included in the workshop events.

Gonzalez-Torres. Anderson is a retired NASA astronaut who participated in two space flights with the International Space Station and Gonzalez-Torres is a former NASA flight director who was in charge of spacewalks. He worked with space shuttle and Hubble Space Telescope missions.

The workshop immerses participants in a series of experiences and classroom activities that are a microcosm of the training NASA astronauts undergo to develop their ability to “think operationally,” a key skill, applicable to many professions, and critically necessary for space exploration.

“Spaceflight Operations is a concept – it’s a thought process,” says Anderson. “When you live and work as an astronaut, you think in an operational sense. The idea with this workshop is to change the students’ way of thinking – to open their eyes to a way to think more operationally.”

In a span of about two weeks scuba diving training (including certification), skydiving, aircraft flight simulation, wilderness preparedness training and more are on the agenda. “We put them in some extreme environments, which is exactly what space travel is all about,” says Anderson.

Student skydiving — A workshop participant and his instructor prepare for touchdown in the workshop’s skydiving activity.

There’s also a healthy dose of classroom activities. Past workshops have covered topics such as operational procedure development (with Aerospace Engineering faculty member and former NASA flight director Tomas Gonzalez-Torres), leadership and teamwork, pilot performance, decision analysis, payload and science operations, astronaut training concepts, and more.

This year’s SOW will be held August 7-18, with home base at Iowa State University. Learn more about SOW here.

Eight Iowa Educators Join International Peers at Space Center Houston Educator Conference.

February 16, 2019

AMES, IA –This past weekend, the Iowa Space Grant Consortium hosted eight Iowa educators at the 25th annual Space Exploration Educators Conference at Space Center Houston. The educators included students preparing to be teachers, science teachers, an instructional coach, a media specialist and a faculty member from University of Northern Iowa.

The conference provides ready to implement ideas for the classroom that can be used in all areas of education, not just science. Educators are empowered with knowledge through sessions led by astronauts, fellow educators, scientists and engineers who are passionate about what they do.

Clayton Anderson, Former astronaut and senior lecturer at Iowa State University, was among the speakers at the conference. He led a training workshop that taught teachers how to think operationally and bring that thinking back into their classrooms.

“Young people are the future of our country. Educators who attend events like SEEC understand that they have the power to change a life. Giving their students proper educational tools and the knowledge to succeed in life is perhaps the most important thing we can do,” said Anderson. “My role as an astronaut allows me to give something back to educators from around the globe, who will impact thousands of young people’s lives. And, as most of them already know, I love educators… always have, always will.”

ISGC’s hosted team received unique, hands-on experiences like underwater diving sessions where they experienced microgravity and trained like real astronauts.

“We learned a wealth of information, are 100% inspired with STEM, and laughed with new friends the entire time,” said Beth Janssen, media specialist at AGWSR School in Ackley, Iowa, “I’ve never attended a conference in which you knew you were where you were meant to be.”

List of Attendees

Robyn Ploeger – Panorama Middle/High School

Kylee Boettcher – Panorama Middle/High School

Brenda Drake – AGWSR Community School

Beth Janssen – AGWSR Community School

Tori Wells – UNI Preservice

Tyler Brown – UNI Preservice

Ron Rinehart – UNI Science Ed. Faculty

There’s still time to apply for the 2019 Spaceflight Operations Workshop

February 14, 2019

Not every summer opportunity for college students involves skydiving, scuba dive certification and wilderness expeditions; but those who are seeking those opportunities and more on their to-do list are submitting their applications now (click here) for the 2019 edition of the Department of Aerospace Engineering’s Spaceflight Operations Workshop™ (SOW) August 7-18. The application deadline is quickly approaching and will close at 11:59 p.m. February 17, 2019.

Coordinated by ISU Aerospace Engineering alumnus and retired NASA astronaut Clayton Anderson — also a senior lecturer in the department — the workshop immerses participants in a series of experiences and classroom activities that are a microcosm of the training NASA astronauts undergo to develop their ability to “think operationally,” a key skill, applicable to many professions, and critically necessary for space exploration.

Hurry while there is still time to apply! Learn more about the Spaceflight Operations Workshop™ from an earlier news release here, and visit the SOW website here.

To the Moon–with the Help of UNI and Iowa Space Grant Consortium

February 13, 2019

Students work with simulated moon rocks for the production
(Quinn Rauchenecker/Space.com photo)

The University of Northern Iowa’s (UNI) “To Touch the Moon” stage production is gaining nationwide notice after an article recently published on Space.com. Funded by the Iowa Space Grant Consortium (ISGC), this newly shaped performance that promotes an interest in space, is geared toward youth with autism or other developmental delays. It ties in to this year’s 50th anniversary of NASA’s Apollo 11 moon landing mission.

Gretta Berghammer, a professor of theater at UNI, explains this production as immersion theater: “Immersion theater actually immerses the audience in the world of the play; the line between audience and actor is blurred as audience members become participating members of the production. They assume a role and become a ‘part’ of the play.”

As she was developing the concept for the play, Berghammer met with the ISGC and was invited to tour NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama to conduct research to help with producing the play. Marcy Seavy, who coordinates Science, Technology, Education and Math (STEM) education at UNI, Mark Parrott of UNI, who is set designer for the play and students from UNI also spent time at the Huntsville facility.

The play ventures into the human journey to the moon in three stages: myths and stories about the moon, work in the NASA labs, and events on the surface of the moon, promoting sensory awareness, social interaction, and nonverbal communication, sparking the curiosity of the STEM fields for ages 9-16.

UNI representatives tour the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in planning To Touch the Moon
(UNI photo)

Tomas Gonzalez-Torres, director of the ISGC and a lecturer in the Iowa State University Department of Aerospace Engineering, and Jay Staker, ISGC associate director, are part of the advisory board for the production. Space historian Andy Chaiken is also on the board.

There will be six performances of “To Touch The Moon” April 19-20 and 26-28, 2019, and they will directly serve 100 youth with autism. They will be held at the Bertha Martin Theatre on the UNI campus. For more information contact Greta Berghammer at gretta.berghammer@uni.edu.

Articles about the play previously published by UNI can be viewed here and here.