Advanced Technologies

Faster "On-Ramp" to Info Highway

A NASA radio astronomy antenna has been reconfigured to allow students, nationwide, to participate in real science via their own microwave and Internet connections, made possible through an educational partnership.

AN EDUCATIONAL PARTNERSHIP IS PROVIDING a faster on-ramp to the information highway for students using a reconfigured NASA antenna for radio astronomy Internet experiments. The Lewis Center for Educational Research in Apple Valley, California, has partnered with LOMAC Information Systems and Mountain States Communication—both headquartered in Victorville, California—as well as Lucent Technologies of Murray Hill, New Jersey, to provide a high-speed wireless Internet link for the Goldstone-Apple Valley Radio Telescope program.

This telescope program is an educational partnership among the Lewis Center, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN). It enables middle school and high school students around the country to take control of a radio telescope at the DSN's Goldstone, California, facility.

Students operate the antenna from classroom computers to perform real scientific research, using curriculum developed by Lewis Center staff and JPL scientists and engineers. The DSN is a worldwide system of ground stations used to communicate with spacecraft and conduct radar and radio astronomy studies.

"We have developed a sophisticated educational tool that gives students everywhere the chance to participate in real science," said Lewis Center Director of Technology Jim Roller. "Until now, we've had to share access to the Internet with many other schools in the county and faced slowdowns that stalled our system. We're extremely pleased with this solution."

Lucent will provide new hardware for a ten-megabit-per-second microwave connection between the Lewis Center and Mountain States Communication. Mountain States will provide dedicated Internet connectivity for clear access to the Internet. LOMAC Information Systems will provide all installation and system maintenance services for the new connection.

"As a NASA laboratory, JPL is committed to giving students the opportunity to experience the real world of science and the thrill of discovery," explained Dr. Michael Klein, manager of the DSN Science Office at JPL. "It's very gratifying to have local and national businesses join us to promote scientific literacy in American schoolchildren. We hope that all the students gain a real appreciation for what science is and an understanding that everyone can participate."

The Goldstone-Apple Valley Radio Telescope program was founded in 1996, when JPL, the Lewis Center and the Apple Valley Unified School District agreed to work together to develop a curriculum-based educational program that uses a radio telescope at Goldstone. Since the program began, 24 teachers and more than 2,000 students in six states have participated. Middle and high school teachers train at the Lewis Center and during a week-long course at Auburn University in Alabama. The Lewis Center is a science and educational resource for students, teachers and community members throughout the region.

For more information, contact Jim Roller at the Lewis Center for Educational Research. Call: 760/242-3514, Fax: 760/242-3783,
E-mail: jim@avstc.org Or contact John G. Watson at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Call: 818/354-5011, E-mail: John.G.Watson@jpl.nasa.gov Please mention you read about it in Innovation.