Since 1965 NASA has adopted mission patches astronauts and people affiliated with missions to wear. Each patch is unique, depicting an image associated with mission operations or goals, and usually listing names of the mission crew. For reference, a complete list of the Apollo Missions to the moon is available on NASA’s website:
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/resources/2293/apollo-mission-patches/

NASA’s Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors (AAA) is a professional development program for high school science teachers designed to improve science teaching and increase student learning and STEM engagement. Training includes a week-long immersion experience at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Hangar 703 in Palmdale, California, with participation in research flights on NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). The program culminates in classroom delivery of a SOFIA science-oriented curriculum module.

AAA teachers receive training in astrophysics and planetary science content and pedagogy. After their flights, they teach a two-week physical science curriculum module created by the SETI Institute that focuses on the electromagnetic spectrum using SOFIA science examples as illustrations.  Students of AAAs embrace their teachers’ acceptance into the selective program and follow the teachers on their professional development journeys.

The AAA management team welcomes ways to actively engage the students during the AAA training year. This year, our Cycle 8 AAAs suggested a patch design contest, to distinguish this year’s group of teachers. The selected mission patch will join NASA’s SOFIA mission patch, adorning AAAs’ flight jackets worn during STEM Immersion Week in Southern California.

For the AAA Cycle 8 patch, we directed submissions to contain the words “NASA AAA Cycle 8” and also include the managing organization, the SETI Institute. Optional images or words included: telescope, SOFIA, astronomical objects, and spectra.

The contest was a huge success! We thank everyone for the amazing participation and impressive submissions to our AAA Cycle 8 patch design contest. We had multiple times the number of submissions as anticipated, and all at the SETI Institute who reviewed the designs were extremely impressed. We truly have another incredible group of Cycle 8 Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors. A HUGE congratulations to these teachers and their amazing students!

We are pleased to announce the winning patch, which was designed by Susan Rolke at Conant High School in Jaffrey, NH.

“When I was sketching the initial design, I was trying to figure out a way to visualize infrared light, which got me to thinking about Herschel's experiment with the prism and thermometers,” said Rolke. “From there, my thoughts wandered to the Dark Side of the Moon poster in my classroom, and I thought, why not. It would be fun to design a patch with elements of both. Infrared light is not visible so I decided to use dots in my design to represent photons of infrared light. There are 28 dots, one for each teacher.  I wanted the patch to represent all the participating teachers, so I included all states. The teachers are from around the border of the design.”

 

The Selected Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors Cycle 8 patch includes states with Cycle 8 AAAs, and also infrared “photons” for each of the 28 participating teachers.

 

Special recognition to the Finalists: