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By Space Force
The Year of the Company Grade Officer focuses on the junior officer corps — aiming to expand pride in service through building an empowered culture of discipline, ownership, excellence and proactive leadership.
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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Auburn University’s project, “Dynamic Ecosystems for Mars ECLSS Testing, Evaluation, and Reliability (DEMETER),” won top prize in NASA’s 2025 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) Competition Forum. National Institute of Aerospace A team from Auburn University took top honors in NASA’s 2025 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) Competition Forum, where undergraduate and graduate teams competed to develop new concepts for operating on the Moon, Mars and beyond.
Auburn’s project, “Dynamic Ecosystems for Mars Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) Testing, Evaluation, and Reliability (DEMETER)” advised by Dr. Davide Guzzetti, took home top prize out of 14 Finalist Teams from academic institutions across the nation. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University took second place overall for their concept, “Adaptive Device for Assistance and Maintenance (ADAM),” advised by Dr. Kevin Shinpaugh. The University of Maryland took third place overall with their project, “Servicing Crane Outfitted Rover for Payloads, Inspection, Operations, N’stuff (SCORPION),” advised by Dr. David Akin, Nich Bolatto, and Charlie Hanner.
The first and second place overall winning teams will present their work at the 2025 AIAA Accelerating Space Commerce, Exploration, and New Discovery (ASCEND) Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada in July.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University took second place overall in NASA’s 2025 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) Competition Forum for their concept, “Adaptive Device for Assistance and Maintenance (ADAM).”National Institute of Aerospace The RASC-AL Competition, which took place from June 2-4, 2025, in Cocoa Beach, Florida, is a unique initiative designed to bridge the gap between academia and the aerospace industry, empowering undergraduate and graduate students to apply their classroom knowledge to real-world challenges in space exploration. This year’s themes included “Sustained Lunar Evolution – An Inspirational Moment,” “Advanced Science Missions and Technology Demonstrators for Human-Mars Precursor Campaign,” and “Small Lunar Servicing and Maintenance Robot.”
“The RASC-AL Competition cultivates students who bring bold, imaginative thinking to the kinds of complex challenges we tackle at NASA,” said Dan Mazanek, RASC-AL program sponsor and senior space systems engineer at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “These teams push the boundaries of what’s possible in space system design and offer new insights. These insights help build critical engineering capabilities, preparing the next generation of aerospace leaders to step confidently into the future of space exploration.”
As NASA continues to push the boundaries of space exploration, the RASC-AL Competition stands as an opportunity for aspiring aerospace professionals to design real-world solutions to complex problems facing the Agency. By engaging with the next generation of innovators, NASA can collaborate with the academic community to crowd-source new solutions for the challenges of tomorrow.
Additional 2025 Forum Awards include:
Best in Theme: Sustained Lunar Evolution: An Inspirational Moment
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Project Title: Project Aeneas Advisor: Dr. Kevin Shinpaugh Best in Theme: Advanced Science Missions and Technology Demonstrators for Human-Mars Precursor Campaign
Auburn University Project Title: Dynamic Ecosystems for Mars ECLSS Testing, Evaluation, and Reliability (DEMETER) Advisor: Dr. Davide Guzzetti Best in Theme: Small Lunar Servicing and Maintenance Robot
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Project Title: Adaptive Device for Assistance and Maintenance (ADAM) Advisor: Dr. Kevin Shinpaugh Best Prototype: South Dakota State University
Project Title: Next-gen Operations and Versatile Assistant (NOVA) Advisor: Dr. Todd Letcher, Allea Klauenberg, Liam Murray, Alex Schaar, Nick Sieler, Dylan Stephens, Carter Waggoner
RASC-AL is open to undergraduate and graduate students studying disciplines related to human exploration, including aerospace, bio-medical, electrical, and mechanical engineering, and life, physical, and computer sciences. RASC-AL projects allow students to incorporate their coursework into space exploration objectives in a team environment and help bridge strategic knowledge gaps associated with NASA’s vision. Students have the opportunity to interact with NASA officials and industry experts and develop relationships that could lead to participation in other NASA student research programs.
RASC-AL is sponsored by the Strategies and Architectures Office within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, and by the Space Mission Analysis Branch within the Systems Analysis and Concepts Directorate at NASA Langley. It is administered by the National Institute of Aerospace.
For more information about the RASC-AL competition, including complete theme and submission guidelines, visit: http://rascal.nianet.org.
National Institute of Aerospace
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Joe Atkinson
Public Affairs Officer, NASA Langley Research Center
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Last Updated Jun 05, 2025 Related Terms
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3 min read NASA Earth Scientist Elected to National Academy of Sciences
Article 48 mins ago 3 min read I Am Artemis: Lili Villarreal
Lili Villarreal fell in love with space exploration from an early age when her and…
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Earth scientist Compton J. Tucker has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences for his work creating innovative tools to track the planet’s changing vegetation from space. It’s research that has spanned nearly 50 years at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, where he is a visiting scientist after retiring in March.
Tucker’s research began with identifying wavelengths of light that are absorbed or reflected as plants undergo photosynthesis, and has evolved into calculating the health and productivity of vegetation over time with satellites.
“I’m honored and surprised,” Tucker said of his election. “There were opportunities at the Goddard Space Flight Center that have enabled this work that couldn’t be found elsewhere. There were people who built satellites, who understood satellite data, and had the computer code to process it. All the work I’ve done has been part of a team, with other people contributing in different ways. Working at NASA is a team effort of science and discovery that’s fun and intellectually rewarding.”
Earth scientist Compton Tucker, who has studied remote sensing of vegetation at NASA Goddard for 50 years, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences.Courtesy Compton Tucker Tucker earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from Colorado State University, where he worked on a National Science Foundation-funded project analyzing spectrometer data of grassland ecosystems. In 1975, he came to NASA Goddard as a postdoctoral fellow and used what he learned in his graduate work to modify the imager on National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) meteorological satellites and modify Landsat’s thematic mapper instrument.
He became a civil servant at the agency in 1977, and continued work with radiometers to study vegetation – first with handheld devices, then with NOAA’s Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer satellite instruments. He has also used data from Landsat satellites, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer instruments, and commercial satellites. His scientific papers have been cited 100,000 times, and one of his recent studies mapped 10 billion individual trees across Africa’s drylands to inventory carbon storage at the tree level.
“The impact of Compton Tucker’s work over the last half-century at Goddard is incredible,” said Dalia Kirschbaum, director of the Earth Sciences Division at NASA Goddard. “Among his many achievements, he essentially developed the technique of using satellites to study photosynthesis from plants, which people have used to monitor droughts, forecast crop shortages, defeat the desert locust, and even predict disease outbreaks. This is a well-deserved honor.”
Goddard scientist Compton Tucker’s work using remote sensing instruments to study vegetation involved field work in Iceland in 1976, left, graduate student research at Colorado State University in the early 1970s, top right, and analyzing satellite data stored on tape reels at Goddard.Courtesy Compton Tucker The National Academy of Sciences was proposed by Abraham Lincoln and established by Congress in 1863, charged with advising the United States on science and technology. Each year, up to 120 new members are elected “in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research,” according to the organization.
In addition his role as a visiting scientist at Goddard, Tucker is also an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland and a consulting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania’s University Museum. He was awarded the National Air and Space Collins Trophy for Current Achievement in 1993 and the Vega Medal by the Swedish Society of Anthropology and Geography in 2014. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Geophysical Union, and won the Senior Executive Service Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Service in 2017, among other honors.
By Kate Ramsayer
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
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Last Updated Jun 05, 2025 EditorErica McNameeContactKate D. Ramsayerkate.d.ramsayer@nasa.govLocationNASA Goddard Space Flight Center Related Terms
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By NASA
Credit: NASA NASA has awarded a bridge contract to ASRC Federal System Solutions LLC of Beltsville, Maryland, to provide financial support and project planning and control services to the agency.
The Program Analysis and Control Bridge Contract has a total potential value up to $98 million with a 13-month period of performance beginning Saturday, May 24. The contract includes both cost-plus-fixed-fee and indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity components.
The scope of the work includes business functions such as accounting, scheduling, documentation and configuration management, as well as security compliance. The work will occur at NASA Headquarters in Washington, Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.
For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/
Tiernan Doyle
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
tiernan.doyle@nasa.gov
Jeremy Eggers
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
757-824-2958
jeremy.l.eggers@nasa.gov
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Last Updated May 23, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
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By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA/Jacob Shaw Capturing the high-stakes work behind NASA’s Airborne Science Program takes more than just technical skill – it takes vision. At NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, videographer Jacob Shaw brings that vision to life, documenting missions with a style and storytelling approach all his own.
“Armstrong is full of cutting-edge flight research and remarkable people,” Shaw said. “Being able to shape how those stories are told, in my own style, is incredibly rewarding.”
Armstrong is full of cutting-edge flight research and remarkable people. Being able to shape how those stories are told, in my own style, is incredibly rewarding.
jacob Shaw
NASA Videographer
Shaw recently earned first place in NASA’s 2024 Videographer of the Year Awards, documentation category, for his film, “Reflections,” which chronicles the 2024 Airborne Science mission PACE-PAX – short for Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment. The campaign used NASA Armstrong’s ER-2 high-altitude aircraft to collect atmospheric and ocean data in support of the PACE satellite, launched in February 2024.
“These missions are live, high-stakes operations – even if the crew makes it look effortless,” Shaw said. “I’m fascinated not just with capturing these moments, but with shaping them into meaningful stories through editing.”
NASA videographer Jacob Shaw shares a moment with his constant companion during a lunch break in the cafeteria at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on May 21, 2025. Shaw recently earned first place in NASA’s 2024 Videographer of the Year Awards – documentation category – for his film, “Reflections,” which chronicles the 2024 Airborne Science mission PACE-PAX – short for Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment.NASA/Genaro Vavuris Shaw’s passion for video began early, inspired by watching his father film family memories with a VHS camcorder in the early 1990s. He said seeing those moments captured made him realize the power of documenting reality and inspired him to pursue videography as a professional and personal passion.
“What I love most about creating videos for NASA at Armstrong Flight Research Center is the creative freedom I’m given to craft stories,” Shaw said. “I’m trusted to take a concept and run with it.”
Since joining the video team in 2021, Shaw has documented dozens of missions, helping to share the center’s groundbreaking work with the world.
“We’re a small crew that wears many hats, always stepping up to get the job done,” Shaw said. “I am thankful for their encouragement to submit my work [for this award], and proud to bring home the gold for Armstrong!”
NASA videographer Jacob Shaw captures footage of the ER-2 aircraft inside a hangar at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, in December 2024. Shaw recently earned first place in NASA’s 2024 Videographer of the Year Awards – documentation category – for his film, “Reflections,” which chronicles the 2024 Airborne Science mission PACE-PAX – short for Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment.NASA/Genaro Vavuris NASA videographer Jacob Shaw and the video team from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, prepare to film the launch of NASA’s SPHEREx mission at Vandenberg Space Force Base. The mission, short for Specto-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer, launched on March 11, 2025, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, continuing NASA’s exploration of the cosmos – and its commitment to visual storytelling.NASA/Jim Ross Share
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Last Updated May 23, 2025 EditorDede DiniusContactDede Diniusdarin.l.dinius@nasa.govLocationArmstrong Flight Research Center Related Terms
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