Think your classroom or garage experiment has what it takes to make it in space? YouTube and computer manufacturer Lenovo are challenging students ages 14-18 to prove it with the launch of the YouTube Space Lab contest.
A panel of scientists, including theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, and top NASA officials will select two of the best-designed experiments to be conducted in space aboard the International Space Station.
Contestants have until December. 7 to submit a two-minute explanation of their proposed experiment. Entries must include an experiment question, hypothesis, experiment method, and expected results. The top 60 finalists will be announced in January, and the overall winners will be chosen by the judging panel and a public vote.
The companies launched the contest with a video announcement by Mike Fossum, a NASA astronaut who is living aboard the International Space Station. "Imagine: You become the scientist. Your experiment is performed in space and streamed back to Earth," he says in the video. "The world watches as your scientific investigation unfolds."
The top six finishers will also get the chance to experience a zero gravity flight. The two winners will win a trip to Japan to watch their experiment's launch, or an astronaut training experience at the Russian cosmonaut training center.
YouTube's newly created Space Lab channel will be the home base for all entries and, eventually, a hub for the best space-related videos on the site.
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