Students To Participate In NASA's Lunar Field Test Activities

To prepare for human exploration of the moon and other destinations in our solar system, NASA is conducting a field test of rovers and equipment at an Earthly site in the Arizona desert. Hundreds of students are invited to experience it. NASA's annual Desert RATS -- or Research and Technology Studies -- field test is underway.

Over 700 elementary and middle school students participating in "Education Alley" at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics' Space 2009 Conference in Pasadena, Calif., will observe field test activities and chat live with the NASA engineers and researchers via satellite at 1 p.m. EDT. Heather Paul and Kimberly Land of NASA's Exploration Technology Development Program will host the event, which will include NASA experts explaining how the agency plans to use similar rovers on the moon; video clips of field test demonstrations; and questions from students.

For more information on NASA's analog field tests, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/analogs