LiveChat Roundup 10/4/12

By Jim Gerard, INSPIRE Education Specialist, KSC, FL

Yesterday, October 4th, began World Space Week, a celebration of space faring nations from across the globe. Timed to coincide with the anniversary of the launch of the Sputnik satellite in 1957, it also celebrates the creation of NASA on October 1 of the following year. To honor World Space Week, the INSPIRE LiveChat was proud to host five NASA Ambassadors. Like INSPIRE, they form a virtual community of college and University students. Members of this virtual community  interact with NASA personnel, share information, make vital professional connections, collaborate with peers, represent NASA in a variety of venues, and help inspire and engage future interns. Through the community's website, participants access tools needed to serve as a student ambassador, blog, announcements, member profiles, forums, polls, and career resources. Sounds a lot like INSPIRE, doesn't it?

The five Ambassadors who presented to our OLC were Tamika Ragland of Alabama A&M, Ahmed Jorge of University of Florida, Kenneth J. Perez at Argonne National Laboratory, Sheridan Ackiss from Georgia Tech, and Matthew Dunne at Manhattan College. All shared their experiences that led to their pursuit of a STEM career and their future plans. A good time of Q&A gave our INSPIRE students a chance to learn from their peers.

Next week, to highlight this month's theme of 'Behind the Scenes at NASA', we'll hear from Luis Berrios of the Kennedy Space Center on 'How to Display an Orbiter'. Berrios is part of the team that is preparing a new home at the KSC Visitor Complex for space shuttle Atlantis. Come and see the plans, designs, and artwork and leaarn what it take to prepare for such a display. That is next Thursday at 8pm CT!