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The Aerospace Education Monthly Newsletter has a new look. The new Civil Air Patrol logo was introduced June 30.
It features a new Flying V symbol (pictured, right). To read about the logo roll-out and requirements on its uses, go here.
The logo announcement occurred while the 2022 National AEO School was in session in Cocoa Beach, Florida. You can find out more about the national school, held from June 27-July 1, below.
This issue features two timely items you don't want to miss. First, K-6 educators are reminded that Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) program registration for the 2022-2023 school year opens Aug. 1.
Second, find the details on the livestream of the launch event portion of the 2022 High Altitude Balloon (HAB) Challenge for CAP Cadets. The event will be livestreamed Aug. 6.
Our member stories this month highlight members who led successful efforts in the inaugural HAB Challenge. The AEO Story features two AEOs from Massachusetts Wing whose squadrons collaborated to win the grand prize in the 2021 HAB Challenge.
This month's featured AEM is from Florida Wing. If you know of other outstanding member stories of AEOs or AEMs, we hope you will reach out to us at ae@capnhq.gov. Your story could be the next one told!
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THIS MONTH: Member stories - Program updates - AE Safety Check - Events - Curriculum - Important things to know | |
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PROGRAM UPDATES
2022-2023 ACE registration opens Aug. 1
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The countdown has begun
To register for ACE
Just nine more days
To add your "FACE"
On August 1st
Simply click right HERE
To engage and inspire
Your students this year!
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Coming soon is your opportunity to be involved in the Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) Program for the 2022-2023 school year. Registration for the new school year will open on Aug. 1. At that time, add your "face" to the program by registering for ACE. Just click on the link in the poem or below.
For additional questions, contact ace@capnhq.gov.
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CAP's AE STEM Kit Program -- featured kit | |
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FEATURED STEM KIT - INDOOR QUADCOPTER: The Indoor Quadcopter STEM Kit includes everything you need to fly a quadcopter indoors. Switch on the included receiver, plug in a battery to your quad, follow the bind procedures, turn on your goggles and fly! The Indoor Quadcopter STEM Kit is compact and portable, easy to charge, and all the components fit perfectly inside the included carrying case.
Items included in this kit: Removal tool, micro props 0.8mm shaft (set of four-2 sets), 6mm brushed motor x 1, lite flight controller, camera set, cockroach super-durable frame, carrying case, controller box goggles, battery charger, batteries (4), screwdriver and miscellaneous items (antennas, cables, screws, etc.). This kit is recommended for ages 10 and older.
FAA requires TRUST certification for all operators. Read how to get certification here.
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High-Altitude Balloon Challenge launches Aug. 6:
Will you be watching? Here are the details
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Civil Air Patrol’s second annual High-Altitude Balloon Challenge for CAP cadets will take to the skies on Saturday, Aug. 6, in central Indiana. Teams from 176 squadrons across all U.S. CAP regions have been planning and submitting their unique test experiments, which will ascend to the edge of space as part of the payloads attached to high-altitude balloons. The launch event will be livestreamed worldwide on CAP’s Aerospace Education YouTube channel operated by Capt. Bob Roberts, HAB Challenge project director and South Carolina Wing director of aerospace education.
Col. Joe Kittinger, HAB Ambassador, will be viewing this event and providing commentary from Orlando with Florida Wing cadets who will be joining him.
The Indiana Wing will be conducting an on-site Search and Rescue Exercise to track and retrieve the payloads as a part of this program’s intent to combine all three CAP missions into one exciting STEM Challenge for the cadets.
Squadrons, schools and families across the country will be holding watch parties to view the exciting launch activities in real time. Livestreaming is scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m. EDT on Aug. 6.
The direct link to the live-streamed event is https://youtu.be/soL5HH_0Pw4.
Plan your own watch party now. If your watch team would like to “go on screen” and cheer the soaring experiments during the event, email the HAB team at HAB@capnhq.gov with your team’s plans and perhaps you will see yourselves on the HAB live feed!
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(Welcome to AE Safety Check! These safety nuggets are things to think about as you lead or participate in an Aerospace Education activity. The writer of this monthly feature is Lt. Col. Karen Cooper, who works in safety and risk management on the AE National Headquarters Staff and is also the Northeast Region DCS/Aerospace Education.)
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ROCKETRY LAUNCH SAFETY
The weather is nice, and you are moving your AE activities outside! One of the things many of you are considering is rocketry. But before you do – you must be familiar with the safety aspects of rocketry. High power rocketry is defined and/or regulated by three distinct entities: the National Association of Rocketry (NAR) and Tripoli Rocketry Association (TRA); the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA); and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It is the responsibility of the Qualified Senior Member (QSM) to see that the NAR SAFETY code guidelines are followed in all model rocket launches. The cadet must demonstrate NAR Safety code proficiency, follow a set pre-flight checklist, and execute the launch and recovery in a safe manner. These codes are available in the Model Rocketry document available on the AE Download page. Safety observers are also encouraged.
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If you have a safety topic you would like to be included in this space, please email kcooper@ner.cap.gov. | |
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Recently, over 60 Aerospace Education Officers (AEOs) from 26 wings and eight regions attended the 19th annual National AEO School at Patrick Space Force Base. The AEO School provided information about their duties and responsibilities as AEOs to help them become more efficient and effective in accomplishing the AE mission. This year’s class experienced field trips to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center. These trips were definitely highlights of the school. Dynamic hands-on activities, using some of the STEM kits, were also a very popular part of the school. CAP National Commander Maj. General Ed Phelka and CAP National Vice Commander Brig. General Regena Aye visited the school and participated in the field trip and classroom activities. “Overall, the school was a huge success,” said Dr. Jeff Montgomery, Director of Aerospace Education. The entire school was recorded and will be available in eServices soon.
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AEO STORY
Massachusetts squadron AE collaboration
yields HAB Challenge win and much more
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This month's "AEO Story" is actually two stories of Massachusetts Wing senior members -- Lt. Col. LouAnn Maffei-Iwuc, Deputy Commander for Cadets at Goddard Cadet Squadron in Worcester and Capt. Leslie Kneipfer, External AEO for Massachusetts and AEO for Bridgewater State University Composite Squadron. Lt. Col. Maffei-Iwuc also serves as Cadet Activities Officer for Massachusetts and assistant AEO for Goddard. The two have been instrumental in combining aerospace activities with their squadrons and were honored for one of their collaborations as they won the grand prize in the inaugural CAP High Altitude Balloon Challenge for Cadets in 2021. As winners, the group traveled to Orlando to receive the Kittinger Cup from Challenge Ambassador, retired USAF Col. Joe Kittinger, famed high altitude balloon scientist. Outside of CAP, Lt. Col. Maffei-Iwuc is a pediatrician serving her community for 37 years. "As a pediatrician, I see children and adolescents from a different perspective," she says. "Their welfare and self-esteem are paramount." Capt. Kneipfer is a STEM teacher for grades K-5. "I have found the perfect niche as an elementary STEM teacher," she says. "Using a problem-based learning approach, with ties to real-world situations and current events, I am able to get students to go beyond pencil and paper solutions and require constructing, testing and evaluating the products." Both have won individual recognition through the years, and Capt. Kneipfer recently was named Major General Jeanne M. Holm Aerospace Education Officer of the Year, a national award. Click the link below to read the full story.
Pictured: At top, winners accept the Kittinger Cup in Orlando from retired USAF Col. Joe Kittinger (far left, Capt. Leslie Kneipfer; far right, Lt. Col. LouAnn Maffei-Iwuc). At right, their squadrons collaborate on AE activities.
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"When the High Altitude Balloon contest was announced by our Wing's Director of Aerospace Education, we could not imagine working independently. We requested and received permission to form the 'Godd-Water' Team."
-- Lt. Col. LouAnn Maffei-Iwuc and Capt. Leslie Kneipfer, Massachusetts Wing
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AEM STORY
Florida AEM sees CAP STEM kits ignite
student interest in STEM career fields
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Meet Suzanne Banas, Ph.D., and National Board Certified Teacher, who recently retired from full-time public teaching in Miami Dade County for the past 40 years. Her grandfather and mother were educators who showed her the value of learning and sharing. "What inspires me as an educator is the students that I have the privilege to teach and my love for education," she says. Now that she is retired, she is developing a hybrid/virtual drone academy for secondary students. "Target students include a majority of minority students, girls interested in STEM careers and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds." She has used CAP AE STEM kits in an aerospace program she developed for her own school and other schools. "The STEM kits really are the best at engaging students," she says. "There is nothing better than seeing a child wanting to learn. CAP materials provide a pathway that engages students' curiosity." Click the link below to reah her full story.
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"By creating this atmosphere of hands-on science, I find that students begin to enjoy science, take initiative in their own learning, and have the desire to continue in the science fields."
-- Dr. Suzanne Banas, Florida AEM
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CURRICULUM SPOTLIGHT
Comet Capers
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In this lesson for young learners, students will learn about comets. They will learn about the "parts" of a comet (including nucleus, coma, hydrogen cloud, dust tail and ion tail) and build a hands-on model. As an extension activity, students can make their own edible Ice Cream Comets. The lesson is Activity 6 in the AEX I Activity Booklet (2020) for Grades K-5. Find the Comet Capers lesson plan here.
(Pictured: This infrared image from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope shows the broken Comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3 skimming along a trail of debris left during its multiple trips around the sun. The flame-like objects are the comet’s fragments and their tails, while the dusty comet trail is the line bridging the fragments.)
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Each month, this space features important highlights or answers to frequently asked questions. Here are three things you need to know now as an AEM or AEO. | |
You can update your eServices profile information. Here's how: | |
Sign into eServices and click on your name in the top right hand corner. Update your email address, mailing address, contact numbers, etc. This ensures you receive timely and pertinent information from CAP. If you are a teacher, ensure your primary email address is your home and your secondary email address is your school so that your annual renewal email and any other important information will not end up as spam in your school email account.
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AEMs: Is it time to renew your membership? | |
All Aerospace Education Members (AEMs) are offered an annual FREE “in-kind renewal." The online renewal email is sent 60 days prior to the membership expiration date. A renewal banner appears at the top of the eServices sign-in page 90 days prior to expiring. (You can’t renew earlier than 90 days.) Find additional information at the link below. Thinking that due to the pandemic you cannot participate in CAP’s AE programs? That may be partly true, but when we get back to “normal,” you will wish you kept your membership current, so do not let it expire!
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AEOs: Reach out to AEMs whose memberships expire soon | |
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AEOs, this is the perfect time to reach out to your AEMs whose memberships expire within 60 days or whose memberships have expired. For more guidance, see Recruiting and Retention of AEMs on the AEO Resources page link below.
Please note: CAP has several categories of membership, but each member can only be assigned one category of membership. Any adult uniformed member, who is an educator, may access all the resources available to an AEM. And, we wish to encourage our AEMs to “hang on” until the end of the pandemic and continue renewing their membership. Once things are back to “normal,” they will be glad they did!
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