Oklahoma State University: Two Space Cowboys Undergraduate Teams Selected For The NASA Micro-G NExT Challenge

Press release from Oklahoma State University:

December 17, 2021

Media Contact:
Kristi Wheeler | Marketing and Communications manager | 405-744-5831 | kristi.wheeler@okstate.edu

Two teams of undergraduate students in the College of Engineering, Architecture and
Technology were selected to participate in next year’s NASA Micro-g NExT challenge.

Team PICTOR will compete with its idea of a lunar samples size and location calibration
marker. Team LIBRA will compete with its idea of a lunar reusable surface anchoring
device. The students on Team PICTOR are Leo Fagge, Kason Clark, Nathan Fant and Colby
Wilson. Landon Dowrs, Omar Abouzahr, Tom Hosty and Jacob Pippin comprise Team LIBRA.

Micro-g Neutral Buoyancy Experiment Design Teams (Micro-g NExT), challenges undergraduates
to design, build and test a device that focuses on a current challenge being faced
in space exploration. This year’s challenges pertain to Artemis, NASA’s lunar exploration
program. The three challenges were: Lunar Surface EVA Operations — EVA Sample Size
Location Calibration Marker; Lunar Surface EVA Operations — EVA Sample Bag & Dispenser;
and Lunar Surface EVA Operations — Lunar Reusable Surface Anchoring Device.

Watch NASA's Video Announcement

Team PICTOR focused on challenge No. 1, Lunar Surface EVA Operations – EVA Sample
Size Location Calibration Marker.

The objective of their project was to design a sample marker for astronauts to place
on the lunar surface. This sample marker will then provide real-time data about the
sample to scientists on earth, allowing them to study it and decide if a sample needs
to be collected. The marker includes calibration tools such as measurement scale,
color bar and grayscale. Students had to account for the various surfaces the marker
would be placed on as well as ease of use for astronauts.

“Getting the chance to work with NASA as an undergraduate and knowing we would have
a small part to play in going back to the moon was the main reason most of us joined
this challenge,” said Leo Fagge, mechanical and aerospace engineering freshman. “This
was the first time participating in this challenge for everyone on my team, so we
all approached the problem with very open minds. We still have a lot of work to do
in order to get ready to go to the Johnson Space Center, but all of us are excited
to have gotten this far.”

“The opportunity to design and test an actual mechanism that will possibly be used
during the Artemis mission is so exciting,” said Kason Clark, a mechanical and aerospace
engineering senior. “What I have really enjoyed about the project so far is the new
connections I have made with younger Oklahoma State students. I feel that our team
collaborates well together and we have all become good friends.”

Team LIBRA focused on challenge No. 3, Lunar Surface EVA Operations – Lunar Reusable
Surface Anchoring Device.

The objective of their project was to design a reusable anchoring device that deploys
quickly, without power and holds force on various objects in space. The mechanism
will help secure astronauts or robots when they need a quick, temporary anchor to
pick up rock samples, hold up a structure or secure an underwater vehicle.

“This is my second year in the competition,” said Omar Abouzahr, mechanical and aerospace
engineering junior. “I have always been intrigued by exploration, especially in space,
so I felt that I could be involved with a facet of it through the NASA Micro-g NExT
challenges while still in school. Additionally, it is a great opportunity to work
with a team of fellow students from brainstorming to testing. I am excited to be part
of the lunar surface anchor challenge. I feel that it is the most difficult challenge,
and we came up with a creative solution that I think NASA seems to be interested in.”

“This year’s competition was particularly fierce and having two OSU teams selected
demonstrates the quality of our interdisciplinary undergraduate students,” said Dr.
Jamey Jacob, director of the Unmanned Systems Research Institute. “This is a great
opportunity for the Space Cowboys team members to interact with NASA and solve some
of their most challenging Artemis problems.”

Both team’s projects will be tested by professional divers in the NASA Johnson Space
Center Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory early next summer.

Story By:
Haley Bradley | haley.bradley@okstate.edu

This press release was produced by Oklahoma State University. The views expressed here are the author’s own.