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PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
NASA asked the National Research Council (NRC) to develop a set of science priorities for this lunar exploration initiative. They recently released a report that summarizes The Scientific Context for Exploration of the Moon. To help integrate those science priorities with NASA’s exploration program, the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) is hosting a special summer intern program to evaluate possible landing sites for robotic and human exploration missions. Four to six interns will work with LPI science staff and other collaborators to evaluate the best landing sites to address each of the NRC’s science priorities. This will be a unique team activity that should foster extensive discussions among students and senior science team members. This Lunar Exploration Summer Intern Program will operate parallel with LPI’s regular summer intern program. This program is open to graduate students in geology, planetary science, and related programs. It is also open to undergraduates with at least 50 semester hours of credit so that they, too, can participate in lunar exploration activities. The 10-week program runs from May 27, 2008 through August 1, 2008. Selected interns will receive a $3,500.00 stipend plus housing and a $1000.00 travel expense reimbursement. The Lunar and Planetary Institute is adjacent to NASA’s Johnson Space Center. The Johnson Space Center is home to the Constellation Program, which is the program designed to carry astronauts to the lunar surface. The results of the summer study project will be compiled and shared with the Constellation Program.
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After a 35-year hiatus, NASA is returning humans to the Moon. The agency and its partners in academia, industry, and the international community are engaged in an exciting new exploration initiative designed to study the lunar surface robotically beginning in 2008 and with crewed landers before 2020.