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Win Cash with an Out-of-This-World Science Project!
Are you curious about comets, baffled by black holes, astounded by astronomy, or mystified by Mars? If so, we have a fun contest for you!Science Buddies has teamed up with Dr. Aaron Romanowsky and Prof. Jean Brodie, researchers at the University of California's Lick Observatory, to hold an astronomy science project contest.
The contest is open to U.S. students in grades K-12. To enter, submit photos or other documentation of your astronomy science project poster board. Your project can be a project that you design yourself, or it can be a project from the Science Buddies library of Astronomy Project Ideas.
Just by entering, students and their teachers will be qualified for one of several $50 cash random drawing prizes. Top student winners, and their teachers, will also receive up to $300 in cash. Winning projects may also be added to the Science Buddies Project Idea Library, with the students as authors. Read the Official Prize Criteria & Rules below for more information.
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| Galaxies, moon craters, the Sun, and auroras are just a few of the many fascinating areas of astronomy. Research your favorite space topic, turn it into a science fair project, and enter it in the Science Buddies - Lick Observatory Astronomy Contest for a chance to win cash prizes! |
Official Prize Criteria & Rules
These rules and regulations are based on the official rules of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), with the permission of Science Service, the organization that runs the Intel ISEF. In case of any discrepancy, omission, or other inadequacy of the rules and guidelines, Science Buddies, in its sole discretion, will make a decision to resolve the issue.
Categories and Prizes
| Category | Winner Description | Grade Range | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original Project Idea | The top astronomy science project based on a student's original idea or a Science Buddies Abbreviated Project Idea*. | 6-8 |
(1) $300 cash prize. (1) 60LCM Computerized Telescope, courtesy of Celestron. Publication of the project idea, or a similar project, on the Science Buddies website, with authorship attributed to the student. |
| Original Project Idea | The top astronomy science project based on a student's original idea or a Science Buddies Abbreviated Project Idea*. | 9-12 |
(1) $300 cash prize. (1) 60LCM Computerized Telescope, courtesy of Celestron. Publication of the project idea, or a similar project, on the Science Buddies website, with authorship attributed to the student. |
| Science Buddies Project Idea | The top astronomy science project that follows the "experimental procedure" or "variations" outlined in a Science Buddies Astronomy Project Idea. | 6-8 |
(1) $200 cash prize. (1) AstroMaster 70AZ Telescopes, courtesy of Celestron. |
| Science Buddies Project Idea | The top astronomy science project that follows the "experimental procedure" or "variations" outlined in a Science Buddies Astronomy Project Idea. | 9-12 |
(1) $200 cash prize. (1) AstroMaster 70AZ Telescopes, courtesy of Celestron. |
| All Projects | All astronomy projects entered in the contest (original or Science Buddies-based) will be placed in a random drawing for cash prizes. | K-12 |
(5) $50 cash prize. (5) Limited Edition Celestron 50th Anniversary FirstScope Telescopes, courtesy of Celestron. |
*Some of the Science Buddies projects have an asterisk (*) after the title, these are "Abbreviated Project Ideas." These projects provide a concept on which you can expand and create your own unique science project. Designed for more independent work, these projects do not contain an experimental procedure.
Science Buddies reserves the right to withhold awards if no projects meet minimum standards.
Teacher Prize Bonus
For every winning project, the student's teacher will win an equal value cash prize. This includes the random prize drawings.
Astronomy Equipment Courtesy of Celestron
Celestron had generously donated the following equipment as part of the prize offerings detailed above:
Limited Edition Celestron 50th Anniversary FirstScope Telescopes(s) Retail value: $70(each) Specifications |
Eligibility
- Legal United States resident or U.S. Citizen.
- Any student in grades K-12 (from any type of school: private, public, home school, etc.).
- If students are competing as a team, they should send one entry for the entire team.
- Participation assumes parental permission. The student and his or her parents must take full responsibility for the safety of the student's experiment.
- Before receiving an award, the student and his or her parents must agree in writing that the project may be published online, photographed, filmed, or taped, and that Science Buddies may use such photographs, film, or tape, and the student's name, school, grade level, and project description in connection with the Science Buddies website and the promotion of Science Buddies, and that the student and his family will not make any claim for invasion of privacy or any other legal right in connection with such uses by Science Buddies.
Individual or Team
Students may compete individually or in teams of up to three (3) students. If a team has a winning project, only one prize will be awarded. Team members are responsible for dividing up the prize amongst themselves.
Ethics Statement
Scientific fraud and misconduct are not condoned at any level of research or competition. Plagiarism, use or presentation of other researcher's work as one's own, and fabrication or falsification of data will not be tolerated. We have tools to check for fraud and plagiarism, and we will use them. Fraudulent projects will fail to qualify for competition.
Requirements
- Students must undertake one research project, of their own choosing, in the field of astronomy. The project may follow (but is not required to follow) the suggested "experimental procedure" or "possible variations" explained in one of the projects listed on the Astronomy Projects home page.
- If a student's project idea requires SRC approval (What is SRC approval?), the student must send an e-mail to scibuddy@sciencebuddies.org with a description of the project idea and why it needs SRC approval. The student must alert the Science Buddies staff before proceeding with the project so that the Science Buddies staff can send instructions for how to fill out and return additional forms (safety assurances, etc).
- Every student, or student team, must complete a project display board describing their project. The final contest submission must include either digital photos, word processor documents, or PDF documents of all the following parts of the project display board:
- Title
- Abstract
- Question
- Variables & hypothesis
- Materials list
- Experimental procedure
- Data analysis including data charts and/or graphs
- Conclusions
- Acknowledgements
- Bibliography
Word processor documents must be saved in Microsoft Word (.doc) or plain text (.txt) format. To be valid, an entry must contain all of the above project display board parts. More information about creating a project display board can be found at http://sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_display_board.shtml.
- If any part of the student's (or team's) experiment is conducted at a research institution or in an industrial setting (e.g., universities, medical centers, research labs), the student must print the ISEF Form 1C: Registered Research Institutional/Industrial Setting Form. The form is available at http://www.societyforscience.org/Document.Doc?id=16. The student (or team) must have the supervising scientist from the organization fill out and sign this form after experimentation and send it, postmarked on or before April 15, 2011, to:
Science Buddies
P.O. Box 5038
Carmel, CA 93921
Deadlines and How to Submit
- Projects from students under the age of 13 must be submitted by either a parent or teacher. Students age 13 and older may submit their own projects.
- Completed entries can be e-mailed to scibuddy@sciencebuddies.org with the subject line: Astronomy Contest Submission. The body of the submission e-mail should also include the following information:
- Student's grade
- Name of student's school
- Parent or teacher's name
- Parent or teacher's e-mail address
- For team projects only, please include information about how the work was distributed amongst the team members
- Entries must be submitted on or before 7PM Pacific Standard Time (PST), April 1, 2011. Date stamps on the e-mail will be checked to ensure eligibility.
Limitations
Each student may enter only one project which covers research done over a maximum, continuous 12-month period between May 2010 and April 2011.
Judging Criteria
- Creative Ability (Individual - 30, Team - 25)
- Does the project show creative ability and originality in the questions asked (the approach to solving the problem, the analysis or interpretation of the data)?
- If using an existing Science Buddies Project Idea, does the project go beyond the description in any way or show more ingenuity or effort than might be expected?
- Scientific Thought (Individual - 30, Team - 25)
- Is the problem stated clearly and unambiguously?
- Was there a procedural plan for obtaining a solution?
- Are the variables clearly recognized and defined?
- If controls were necessary, did the student recognize their need and were they correctly used?
- Are there adequate data to support the conclusions?
- Does the finalist/team recognize the data's limitations?
- Does the finalist/team understand the project's ties to related research?
- Does the finalist/team have an idea of what further research is warranted?
- Did the finalist/team cite scientific literature, or only popular literature?
- Thoroughness (Individual - 15, Team - 12)
- Was the purpose carried out to completion within the scope of the original intent?
- How completely was the problem covered?
- Are the conclusions based on a single experiment or replication?
- How complete are the project notes?
- Is the finalist/team aware of other approaches or theories?
- How much time did the finalist or team spend on the project?
- Is the finalist/team familiar with scientific literature in the studied field?
- Skill (Individual - 15, Team - 12)
- Does the finalist/team have the required laboratory, computation, observational and design skills to obtain supporting data?
- Where was the project performed (i.e., home, school laboratory, university laboratory)? If any part of the student's experiment is conducted at a research institution or in an industrial setting (e.g. universities, medical centers, research labs), the student must print, fill out, and return the ISEF Form 1C: Registered Research Institutional/Industrial Setting Form. (See Requirements above.)
- Did the student or team receive assistance from parents, teachers, scientists or engineers?
- Where did the equipment and supplies come from?
- Clarity (Individual - 10, Team - 10)
- How clearly does the finalist discuss his/her project and explain the purpose, procedure, and conclusions?
- Does the written material reflect the finalist's or team's understanding of the research?
- Are the important phases of the project presented in an orderly manner?
- How clearly is the data presented?
- How clearly are the results presented?
- How well does the research paper explain the project?
- Did the finalist/team perform all the project work, or did someone help?
- Teamwork (Team Projects only - 16)
- Are the tasks and contributions of each team member clearly outlined?
- Was each team member fully involved with the project, and is each member familiar with all aspects?
- Does the final work reflect the coordinated efforts of all team members?
