Chevrier, V.F., J. Hanley, T.S. Altheide (2009), Stability of perchlorate hydrates and their liquid solutions at the Phoenix landing site, Mars, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L10202, doi:10.1029/2009GL03 7497.

Coleman, K.A., J.C. Dixon, K.L. Howe, L.A. Roe, V. Chevier (2009), Experimental simulation of martian gully forms, Planetary and Space Science, 57, 711-716.

Ulrich, R. (2009), Modeling diffusion advection in the mass transfer of water vapor through martian regolith, Icarus, 201(1), 127-134.

The Space Center would like to congratulate its newest SPAC doctoral candidates: Dixie Androes, Scott Barrows, David Blackburn, and Felix Wasiak.  Congratulations to all of you!

The Space Center is exicited to announce that Kate Coleman and Adam Hughes, Space Center graduate students, have been selected as GK12 Fellows for the 2009-2010 academic year with the KIDS (K-12, I Do Science) Program.

The National Science Foundation awarded a grant to the University of Arkansas that has been used to develop KIDS; an interdisciplinary program focused on electronics and optics that initiates a new effort to teach math, science and technology in middle schools in Arkansas.  The premise is that students who explore their own ideas and create their own experiments to test hypotheses are actively engaged in learning.

The program matches graduate students (called fellows) in engineering, chemistry, physics, and other science programs including SPAC with sixth and seventh  grade teachers in local school districts.  Fellows receive a week of summer training focused on teaching skills,  curriculum standards in Arkansas, and how the KIDS approach will strengthen the teachers’ content knowledge and ability through inquiry.  Local middle school teachers receive training focused on content and implementing inquiry-based techniques in the classroom.

The fellows are expected to spend at least 10 hours per week in the classroom, develop seven lesson plans each semester, be enrolled in at least six credit hours, attend a weekly one-hour meeting, and spend 20 hours per week on research.

Fatemeh Sedaghatpour, a Space Center graduate student, recently went to Manchester, United Kingdom, for an internship with the Cosmochemistry Group at the University of Manchester.  She spent one month there working with Dr. Karen Theis.  Fata started her research with the study of extraterrestrial particles such as micrometeorites and interplanetary dust particles by using the thermoluminescence technique.  The result of this study on micrometeorites has been accepted in the journal Meteoritics and Planetary Science.  In addition, she also studied the isotopic composition of meteorite and lunar samples.

While working at the University of Manchester, Fata became more familiar with the ICP-MS instrument and specifically iron analysis.  For future research, she plans to measure multiple isotopes in extraterrestrial samples to constrain the formation and evolutionof the early solar system.

Josiah Walton, a former Space Center Honors REU student, received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.  He received the Rear Admiral Wiliam C. Bryson Schol-arship.  Josiah’s field of study is physics and astronomy (particle physics).  His current institution is the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.  His graduate institution will be the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The Graduate Research Fellowship provides three years of support for graduate study leading to research-based master’s or doctoral degrees and is intended for students who are in the early stages of their graduate study.  The Graduate Research Fellowship Program invests in graduate students who demonstrate their potential to successfully complete graduate degree programs in disciplines relevant to the mission of the National Science Foundation.

Dr. Diedrich Mohlmann of the DLR Institut fur Planetenforschung recently gave a talk at the Space Center.  It was titled, “Liquid water in the upper sub-surface of Mars.”  Dr. Mohlmann is a geophysicist working in the field of planetary science.  His research is related to the thermo physical properties of cometary surfaces, physics of plasma, planet formation, and today the characteristics of the adsorbed water on Mars.  At DLR he coordinates the Humidity Laboratory, where inside a Mars Simulation Chamber, the survival possibilities of various extremophyle organisms are tested under Mars-like conditions.

Several members of the Space Center recently attended the Workshop on Modeling Martian Hydrous Environments at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston.  Vincent  Chevrier, a member of the Space Center, gave a talk entitled, “Viscosity of liquid ferric sulfate solutions and application to the formation of gullies on Mars.”  Kelly Howe, a Space Center graduate student, presented, “Experimental simulation of the effect of viscous fluids on Martian gully forms.”  Jennifer Hanley, a Space Center graduate student, presented a talk entitled, “Aqueous perchlorate liquid solutions at the Phoenix landing site.”  Edgard Rivera-Valentin, a Space Center graduate student, delivered a presentation entitled, “Time dependent model for heat transfer and water vapor diffusion/adsorption at the Phoenix landing site.”   Deanna Berget, a Space Center REU student, also attended.  The students had a great deal of positive feedback from other scientists on the quality of their research and presentations.

Above photo caption - Back row from left: Vincent Chevrier, Edgard Rivera-Valentin, Kelly Howe; Front row from left: Deanna Berget, Jennifer Hanley

Ahmed El Shafie, a Space Center graduate student, recieved an award for a poster that he presented at The Second Annual Graduate Student Research Symposium & Career Networking Event.  The title of the poster was, “Penetration testing of the OPRA regolith penetrator.”  The event consisted of three parts: the poster presentation/competition; the career development and networking event and awards ceremony; and, the professional reception.  The competition was open to all University of Arkansas graduate students.  Posters could be entered in one of six categories:  Agriculture and Life Sciences; Business; Education; Engineering; Physical Sciences; and, Social Sciences.  Ahmed won the category for Physical Science.  Congratulations Ahmed!

Above photo caption - From left: Dr. Pat Koski, Associate Dean of the Graduate School; Ahmed El Shafie, Space Center graduate student; Dr. Collis Geren, Dean of the Graduate School; Crystal N. Hunnicutt, Career Development Center

The Space Center has recently been involved in a number of outreach events.

Dixie Androes, a Space Center graduate student, brought several groups of NorthWest Arkansas Community College (NWACC) astronomy students to the Space Center for a planetarium demonstration.  The students were members of Dixie’s astronomy classes at NWACC, where she is a faculty member.  There were 75 students that were broken down in to four groups for the demonstrations.

A group of high school students from Mountainburg High School, led by Jamie Noisewater, visited the planetarium for a demonstration.

Cub Scout Pack 107 from Springdale, Ark., also visited the Space Center for a planetarium demonstration.

Paula Brooks, a teacher in the The Scholar’s Program, brought two groups of students to the planetarium for demonstrations.  Their program is for gifted and talented students in the Fayetteville School District.  It is taught by teachers working on their Master’s degree in Gifted and Talented Education.  The students were from Root Elementary School in Fayetteville, Arkansas.  The curriculum for the classes focused on what professionals in the space field do and the tools used in the space industry.

All of the groups thoroughly enjoyed the demonstrations, which were led by members of the Space Center Planetarium Board.  The Board is made up of Space Center graduate students.  Thanks so much to our students for all of your help!

Rob Pilgrim, a Space Center graduate student, visited the Springdale Public Library in Springdale, Ark., to speak to a group of young children in an after school program.  His presentation was titled, “Things that are hard to see without a telescope.”

Pictures of the visiting groups are on the Space Center Public Outreach page.

Seventh International Conference on Geomorphology (ANZIAG)
July 6-11, 2009
Melbourne, Australia

72nd Meteoritical Society Meeting
July 13-18, 2009
Nancy, France

International Conference on Space Technology
August 24-26, 2009
Thessaloniki, Greece

International Conference on Asteroid-Comet Hazard 2009
September 21-25, 2009
St. Petersburg, Russia

International Meteor Conference 2009
September 24-27, 2009
Porec, Croatia

41st Annual Meeting of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society
October 4-9, 2009
Fajardo, Puerto Rico

Geological Society of America Annual Meeting
October 18-21, 2009
Portland, Oregon