Raving Toy Maniac

New Preschool Animated Series Space Racers Will Premiere in Spring 2014

Maryland Public Television Serves as National Presenting Station for American Public Television-Distributed Production

Series Features Segments Produced in Collaboration with NASA Experts

OWINGS MILLS, Md., Oct. 24, 2013 -- Maryland Public Television (MPT) will be the presenting station for the new, original half-hour preschool series Space Racers. The 26-episode animated program focuses on science and technology components as part of an early childhood STEM curriculum, with input from NASA experts on science and space technology within the series. Produced by Space Race, LLC, Space Racers is scheduled to premiere on public television stations in spring 2014 and is distributed through American Public Television.

NASA Partners With The LEGO Group For Design And Build Contest

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2013 -- NASA and the LEGO Group are partnering to inspire the next generation of aerospace engineers by offering a new design competition. The competition will spur students of all ages to use the toy bricks in building models of future airplanes and spacecraft.

The "NASA's Missions: Imagine and Build" competition opens Wednesday with an entry deadline of July 31. Winners in each category will be selected by a panel of NASA and LEGO officials and announced Sept. 1.

The first category in the contest is "Inventing our Future of Flight." In this challenge, participants will design and build their idea for an aircraft of the future based on real concepts and new technology NASA's aeronautics innovators are working on to increase fuel efficiency and reduce harmful emissions and noise.

Actor Jaden Smith Focuses On Earth Science in a New NASA PSA

WASHINGTON, May 30, 2013 -- Jaden Smith, star of Columbia Pictures' movie "After Earth," is featured in a new NASA public service announcement that describes the contributions of the agency's Earth science program to environmental awareness and exploration of our home planet.

The public service announcement features imagery from "After Earth" as well as animations of Earth data from 17 orbiting NASA satellites. The satellites are making cutting-edge observations of the entire Earth system, including the atmosphere, oceans, land surface, and snow and ice. The observations are used by scientists worldwide to improve our understanding of our complex planet, better predict the future of our changing climate, and enhance life on Earth today.

Angry Birds™ Space Encounter Opens at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex

Comprehensive, Interactive Attraction is the First of its Kind in the United States

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., March 22, 2013 -- KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – The internationally popular Angry Birds™ have landed at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex for a new mission in space.

Angry Birds Space Encounter, the first comprehensive, interactive Angry Birds attraction in the United States designed for people of all ages, opened today at the Visitor Complex. Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex partnered with Rovio Entertainment, creator of the globally successful Angry Birds franchise, including Angry Birds Space, to bring the beloved characters to life.

Space Station Cargo Ship Flights To Be Broadcast On NASA TV

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2013 -- NASA Television will provide live coverage of the departure of one Russian cargo spacecraft at the International Space Station and the launch and arrival of another.

The ISS Progress 48 resupply ship, which arrived at the station last August, will depart the Pirs docking compartment, part of the Russian segment, on Saturday, Feb. 9. The Progress will leave orbit three hours later and burn up above the Pacific Ocean. NASA TV coverage of the undocking will begin at 8 a.m. EST. The undocking is scheduled for 8:15 a.m.

That move will clear Pirs for the arrival of the new ISS Progress 50 resupply spacecraft. It is scheduled to launch at 9:41 a.m. (8:41 p.m. Kazakhstan time) Monday, Feb. 11, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. NASA TV coverage of the launch begins at 9:30 a.m. The Progress is loaded with almost 3 tons of food, fuel, supplies and experiment hardware for the six crew members aboard the orbital laboratory.

New NASA Book Traces Space Nutrition From Tubes To Today

HOUSTON, Dec. 14, 2012 -- America's space program has come a long way from the early days when astronauts ate food packed in toothpaste tubes. Today, nutrition is known to be a key ingredient in astronaut health in space, just as it is for humans on Earth.

NASA scientists and educators have teamed up to publish a book, aimed at intermediate school students, that explains the role of nutrition in the space program. The free e-book describes how space nutrition research is conducted and highlights this important avenue of ongoing research at NASA. Educator Guides that suggest ways to incorporate the material into the classroom, along with mapping to National Science Education Standards, accompany the text.

New "Earth as Art" Book Illustrates Beauty Of Satellite Views

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30, 2012 -- A stunning array of images of our home planet, taken by Earth-observing science satellites, are featured in a new NASA publication. The book, "Earth as Art," is available in hardcover, electronically, and as a free iPad application.

The 158-page book celebrates the aesthetic beauty of Earth in the patterns, shapes, colors and textures of the land, oceans, ice and atmosphere. Images include snow-capped mountain peaks in the Himalayas, Arizona's Painted Desert, the Mississippi River Delta spreading into the Gulf of Mexico, a Saharan dune sea in Algeria, and Byrd Glacier in Antarctica.