NASA student programs and senior capstone design experience

A significant way to attract engineering students, especially aerospace and mechanical engineering majors, to space issues is to implement exciting NASA student programs into the senior-year capstone design experience. Three years ago the University of Tennessee's Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering Department offered two new projects, named "Microgravity" and "Lunar Rover Vehicle", as senior capstone design projects. Both require participation, on a competitive basis, in two corresponding NASA programs: "The Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program" and "The Great Moonbuggy Race". Three years of experience have demonstrated that both programs are very suitable in offering senior students unique opportunities to improve their analytical abilities, develop design skills, gain experience in working in multi-disciplinary teams, solve cutting-edge engineering problems, and familiarize themselves with space issues and technical problems.