Joshua Buck
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
jbuck@nasa.gov

Brandi Dean
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
brandi.k.dean@nasa.gov


RELEASE: 12-166

NASA SELECTS FIVE UNIVERSITIES FOR 2013 X-HAB INNOVATION CHALLENGE

WASHINGTON -- Five universities have been selected to participate in
the 2013 Exploration Habitat (X-Hab) Academic Innovation Challenge
led by NASA and the National Space Grant Foundation. These
universities will design habitat systems, concepts and technologies
that could be used in future deep space habitats.

The selection is the first milestone in a year-long process for these
five teams. Throughout the 2012-2013 academic year, the teams will
meet a series of milestones to design, manufacture, assemble and test
their systems and concepts in cooperation with the NASA Advanced
Exploration Systems (AES) Program's Habitation Systems Project team.

"The X-Hab Academic Innovation Challenge is an exciting opportunity to
engage university teams in the design process for NASA's next
generation space systems," said Jason Crusan, NASA's AES Program
manager at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "The agency benefits from
the fresh and innovative perspective of these university teams, and
they learn about deep space human exploration and the systems
engineering approach from an experienced NASA team."

The challenge is a university-level participatory exploration effort
designed to encourage studies in spaceflight-related disciplines. The
challenge encourages multidisciplinary approaches, further outreach
efforts and partnering with experts and industry. This design
challenge requires undergraduate students to explore NASA's work on
development of deep space habitats while also helping the agency
gather new ideas to complement its current research and development.
NASA selected these five teams from among a group of proposals
received in May 2012.

The X-Hab Academic Innovation Challenge 2013 teams are:

- California State Polytechnic University: Vertical Habitability
Layout and Fabrication Studies
- Oklahoma State University: Deep Space Habitat, Horizontal
Habitability Layout Studies
- Texas A&M University: Wireless Smart Plug for DC Power
- University of Alabama in Huntsville: Design and Development of a
Microgravity Random Access Stowage and Rack System
- University of Colorado at Boulder: Remote Plant Food Production
Capability

The National Space Grant Foundation will fund design costs,
development and delivery of the systems to the AES Habitat Systems
team during the summer of 2013.

NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate's Advanced
Exploration Systems Program, via the Habitat Systems Project team, is
sponsoring the technology challenge. NASA is dedicated to supporting
research that enables sustained and affordable human and robotic
exploration. This educational challenge contributes to the agency's
efforts to train and develop a highly skilled scientific, engineering
and technical workforce for the future.

For information about competition registration and requirements,
visit:

http://www.spacegrant.org/xhab

For more information about the Advanced Exploration System Program
Habitation Systems Project team, visit:


http://go.nasa.gov/L37Ymq


David Cottle

UBB Owner & Administrator