HOUSTON – The University of Idaho, in coordination with NASA, is hosting a panel on the research it has done on alternative energy storage capability and how it can be used on Earth and in future space colonization May 2 at the university’s main campus in Moscow.
Joe Law, Ph.D., and a team of four student interns will discuss high-speed flywheel designs that could provide safe, reliable and convenient energy storage for intermittent energy generation technologies, such as solar and wind, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. MDT in TLC031 auditorium. Seating is limited.
Law, with the guidance of NASA Glenn Research Center Technical Monitor Ray Beach, began the second phase of his research last September.
Flywheel energy storage works by accelerating a rotor, or flywheel, to a very high speed and maintaining the energy in the system as rotational energy.
The panel will discuss its advancements in flywheel technology, the future of the project, partnerships created through the grant at the university and the potential terrestrial applications of the research. Interns finishing their senior design project also will present on their contributions to the project.
The University of Idaho is one of five universities nationwide awarded $250,000 through NASA’s Ralph Steckler Space Grant Colonization Research and Technology Development Opportunity Phase II. Grant money is being used for research and technology development activities that support a sustained human presence in space, increase understanding of the moon’s environment and develop basic infrastructure for future space colonies.
Members of the media must reserve their seating by April 27 with either Heather L. Ogletree at heather.l.ogletree@nasa.gov or Becky Highfill at bhighfil@uidaho.edu.
In addition to the Steckler presentation, a representative from NASA Johnson Space Center’s Office of Education will be available after the presentation to answer questions regarding NASA internship opportunities.
For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov
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Rachel Kraft/Heather L. Ogletree
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111/281-244-6957