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As part of Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­â€™s participation in the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program, students aren’t just designing real microgravity experiments for launch to the International Space Station—we’re also running a Mission Patch Art and Design Competition to bring a different kind of creativity to this journey. The winning patch designs will fly to space aboard the same mission as our student experiment, then return to Earth.

This will be a community effort: Two patches will fly into space—one selected from submissions by Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ and local high school students, and one designed by K-8 students from our local community.

What Is a Mission Patch?

Every space mission—from Mercury and Apollo to the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station—has carried a mission patch: a small emblem that tells the story of the people and purpose behind the flight and captures its excitement. Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ will now add a page to that history.

A mission patch is a 3.5″ x 3.5″ square design that represents what the Mission Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ journey means to you and to Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ as a community looking to the stars. .

• No science background required. This competition is open to art, design, and creative minds of all ages—not just STEM.
• Be part of something historic. Mission patches have flown on every human spaceflight since Project Mercury in the 1960s. Yours could be next.
• Represent your community. Your design becomes part of the visual story of Mission Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­.

Mission Patch Contest Details

New York school administrators or faculty members in Nassau, Queens, or Suffolk counties who would like students to participate in the Mission Patch Competition should contact Dr. Kevin Liang.

One winning design will be selected from each track, and both patches will fly together to the International Space Station as part of Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­â€™s SSEP payload.

Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ and High School Track

Open to undergraduates across every school and major, student organizations and creative clubs, plus high schoolers in our community. You don’t need to be on the experiment team to help tell our story—if you can design, sketch, paint or create digitally, you belong in this competition.

K-8 Student Track

Open to elementary students at our local partner schools. This is a first real, hands-on brush with the space program for our youngest scientists and artists—a chance to imagine what space exploration means to them and put it on paper.