Gaining Traction on Mars: An Engineering Design Challenge

Wednesday 06/20/2018

6:30 pm (Eastern Time)

Educators in Grades 6-8

NASA Educator Professional Development is presenting a free 60-minute webinar for 6-8 educators on June 20, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. EST. NASA’s Gaining Traction on Mars resource will lead you through engineering design challenges where students design and test wheels matching those on the Curiosity rover on Mars while studying their longevity. We will discuss four lead-up investigations that provide background knowledge for the Engineering Design Challenge, students dive into understanding the forces that interact to propel a vehicle across a sandbox—the same forces that push a car down the highway or move a rover on Mars.

Deepika is a NASA Education Professional Development Specialist at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. She works to support education in eleven East Coast states ranging from Virginia to Maine. Deepika has worked in STEM Education in various capacities – as a researcher, educator, outreach coordinator, member of a non-profit startup, and K-8 Educator. She has enjoyed building diverse experiences in STEM education and hopes to add unique value to Educator Profession Development at NASA. Deepika has degrees in Electrical Engineering from University of Mysore, India (Bachelors), University of Maryland, College Park (Masters), and Purdue University (Ph. D.) where she researched how to teach fundamental disciplinary concepts in Electrical Engineering.