The Cassini spacecraft launched in October 1997 and has been orbiting Saturn since 2004.
The essay contest is open to students in grades 5-12. Essays must be under 500 words.
There are three essay topics to choose from:
1. Saturn’s small shepherd moon, Pan
2. Saturn’s F Ring
3. Saturn
Students choose one of these topics and write an essay about why they think this image should be taken by the Cassini spacecraft. What questions do they hope will be answered by taking this picture?
The essay contest meets U.S. National Science and Language Arts Standards.
For contest rules, videos about each essay topic, a downloadable contest flyer, frequently asked questions, and more information, visit:
The contest deadline is Wednesday, October 24, 2012. All essays must be submitted by the student’s teacher. If the essay contest is used as a class assignment, please send the top 3 essays from each class, along with a list of other students who wrote essays for the contest.
All students who write essays will receive a certificate of participation. Winners and their classes will be invited to participate in a teleconference with Cassini scientists. Winning essays will be posted on the Cassini website.
For questions about the contest, e-mail scientistforaday@jpl.nasa.gov
Good luck!
Best wishes,
The Cassini Outreach Team
scientistforaday@jpl.nasa.gov