January CAP AE Newsletter

January 2025

Happy New Year! We hope to help you make 2025 another amazing year of aerospace/STEM education and inspiration!

As the year kicks off, there are upcoming deadlines to note.

Registration has opened and will remain open until March 1 for an exciting new CAP research collaboration with NASA: the 2025 Contrail Mission to study how aircraft affect weather in the upper atmosphere. Check out this newsletter to find out details and how to participate.

There are just a few more days to take a look back at the great aerospace/STEM work in your squadrons and schools in 2024 so that CAP can recognize outstanding performance in AE. We want to recognize the excellent AE service and the impact that service is making, and we need your help. The first step of National Award deadlines is approaching this month. This newsletter has links to important nomination information on awards for AEOs, cadets, and teachers

Separately, our Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) program recognizes the outstanding work of leaders, students, and schools in this grade-specific K-12 STEM program. Those nominations are not due until April, but now is a perfect time to start preparing to nominate yourself or another ACE participant for national awards. Read more below.

As always, if you have any information you'd like to see highlighted in an upcoming newsletter, contact us at ae@capnhq.gov.

(Pictured: the 2025 Contrail Mission patch)

THIS MONTH: Program updates - News and Events - AE Safety Check - Curriculum - Important things to know

PROGRAM UPDATES

ACE teachers, prepare now for national awards;

and it's not too late to participate for 2024-2025

Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) teachers, we hope your semester is getting off to a great start after the holidays. As you continue your ACE lessons, remember that CAP recognizes an outstanding ACE teacher, student, and school each year with National Awards. The deadline for those award submissions is April 25, but now is a great time to begin preparing.

Have an amazing rest of your year! If you are not an ACE teacher and teach K-6 grades, there is still time to register. Click below to register for ACE.

MORE INFORMATION ON ACE AND ACE AWARDS

Check out award deadlines; find TOP Flight

and ACE Plus program information

Click each link if you missed the updates in recent newsletters:

News and Events

Squadrons: Registration is open for CAP-NASA collaboration to study how aircraft affect

weather in the upper atmosphere

Join Aerospace Education for an exciting opportunity to contribute to groundbreaking NASA research. Following the tremendous success of our Solar Eclipse Missions in 2023 and 2024, Civil Air Patrol is again collaborating with NASA for the 2025 Contrail Mission to study how aircraft affect weather in the upper atmosphere. This dynamic mission offers squadrons the chance to participate in real scientific research while earning Quality Cadet Unit Award (QCUA) points. Members will work together in teams of 6-18 CAP volunteers, and they will tackle mission roles such as Weather Officer, Flight Tracker, Photographer, Orienteer, and Data Manager.

Registration is now open through March 1. Register your squadron today and join us in advancing our understanding of atmospheric science! Read more or register by clicking the links.

FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION

AE Safety Check

(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, National AE Manager, who works in safety and risk management on the AE National Headquarters Staff and is also the Northeast Region DCS/Aerospace Education.)

TELESCOPE SAFETY REMINDERS

Do you have plans to use the STEM Kit Telescope in the near future – and take advantage of the early sunset during your squadron meeting? Please keep this in mind:

Never use a telescope or binoculars to look at the Sun.
It is recommended to not use the telescope in daylight hours. If you are using it in the daytime, keep the lens cap on the finder telescope to avoid accidents with the Sun.
Make sure the telescope is sitting on a secure, level surface removed from edges and tipping hazards. Avoid setting the telescope up near tripping hazards such as stairs, uneven ground, or water.
Allow your eyes at least 10 minutes to adjust to the dark conditions needed to use the telescope at night; don’t rush to start observing.
Use a flashlight with a red bulb at night to prevent you from losing your night vision. A shielded lighting (or the Moon) helps you move around more safely.
Try to work with the telescope in a small group, six or fewer (so it is easier to remember where everyone else is standing).
Avoid any horseplay or shoving and keep foods and liquids away from the equipment.
Do not leave the equipment unattended.

MORE AE SAFETY INFORMATION

If you have a safety topic you would like to be included in this space, please email kcooper@ner.cap.gov.

CURRICULUM SPOTLIGHT

Forces of Flight

This lesson, from Civil Air Patrol's Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) program, teaches students about the four forces of flight: weight (or gravity), lift, thrust, and drag. Students will demonstrate these forces and experiment with flight. ACE is CAP's grade-specific, K-6 STEM program. Participating instructors get class sets of that grade's materials. This lesson, from the 5th-grade guide, uses the balsa power planes provided to each member of the instructor's class. This ACE activity is Academic Lesson #2 in CAP's Grade 5 Aerospace Connections in Education Guide. Or find it here. And if you are not a part of the ACE program, which served more than 100,000 students last year, registration is still open for the 2024-2025 ACE year.

FORCES OF FLIGHT LESSON

Each month, this space features important highlights or answers to frequently asked questions. Here are four things you need to know as an AEM or AEO.

AEOs: There is an FAQ page for AEOs on the website

There is an FAQ page for AEOs on the Aerospace Education web pages of GoCivilAirPatrol.com. You will find answers to your questions about serving as an AEO. This will especially be good to check out for new AEOs, but veteran AEOs might find some answers to questions they have as well. We encourage all AEOs to check out this page. Here is an example of one of the questions and the answer. Follow the link to find out.

I KEEP HEARING ABOUT STEM KITS - CAN I GET ONE?

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.

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.

AEOs: Reach out to AEMs whose memberships expire soon

AEOs, 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.

Civil Air Patrol Aerospace Education

Contact: Aerospace Education

https://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/ae