Congratulations to our two affiliates, Sonoma State University and UC San Diego, for each winning  one of the Undergraduate Student Instrument Project (USIP) Student Flight Research Opportunities.

NASA will award more than $8 million through the competitively selected USIP to 47 teams of undergraduate students to conduct hands-on flight research.

Through the USIP program, NASA seeks to build science, technical, leadership and project skills among undergraduate students by offering them real-world experience in developing and flying science or technology experiments that are relevant to NASA’s missions.

89 proposals were received in response to a joint solicitation from NASA’s Office of Education, working through the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program, and the agency’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) in Washington. The 47 selected projects will fly on suborbital and orbital vehicle platforms, such as CubeSats, aircraft, sounding rockets, balloons and other commercial platforms. NASA will cover launch and flight costs, and each award has a two-year period of performance. Award amounts depend on the project and range from $50,000 to $200,000.

Congratulations again to Sonoma State University and Dr. Lynn Cominksy for the project entitled, EdgeCube: A 1U Global Monitor for Earth’s Ecosystems, and UC San Diego and Dr. John Kosmatka for the project entitled, Solar-Powered Unmanned Aircraft System for Long-Endurance Enviromental Monitoring.

NASA Press Release, April 6, 2016