NASA DEVELOP National Program

DEVELOP is a training and development program sponsored by NASA's Earth Science Applied Sciences Program. Headquartered at NASA Langley Research Center, DEVELOP has teams at twelve locations around the country, and one in Mexico. Participants work as interns with advisers and mentors to learn AbOUT the application of NASA Earth Science and remote sensing during three 10-week terms.

DEVELOP is based in the Earth Science Mission, which has the goal to "Develop a scientific understanding of Earth’s system and its response to natural or human-induced changes, and to improve prediction of climate, weather, and natural hazards." With a unique focus on community concerns, DEVELOP offers participants the chance to work with remote sensing to research real-world problems.

History of DEVELOP

In 1998, two students participating in the Langley Aerospace Research Summer Scholars (LARSS) Program and one student participating in the Summer High School Apprenticeship Research Program (SHARP) at NASA Langley Research Center co-authored the white paper Practical Applications of Remote Sensing (Bauer et al., 1998). At that time, the Digital Earth Initiative, a federal inter-agency project dedicated to creating a virtual representation of the Earth to further human understanding of the world, was piloting an effort to increase public access to federal information about the Earth and the environment. A proposal combining NASA’s Digital Earth Initiative and the students’ paper advocated the formation of a student program, and in 1999 DEVELOP was formed.

Team Locations

Locations based at NASA Centers:

• Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA
• Ames Research Center in Mountain View, CA
• Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD
• Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, MS
• Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA

Regional US locations:

• Mobile County Health Department, Mobile, AL
• Wise County Clerk of Court Office, Wise, VA
• North Central Climate Science Center, Fort Collins, CO
• The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, Chicago, IL
• International Research Institute for Climate and Society, Palisades, NY

Leveraged Academic Institutions:

• Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO
• Center for Geospatial Research, UGA, Athens, GA

International Locations:

• Tecnologico de Monterry (Monterrey Tech), Campus Saltillo, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico
• International Centre for Intergrated Mountain Development, Kathmandu, Nepal

Each team location varies in size and participant educational background.

Dual Capacity

The Applied Sciences’ DEVELOP National Program addresses environmental and public policy issues through interdisciplinary research projects that apply NASA Earth observations to community concerns around the globe. DEVELOP bridges the gap between NASA Earth Science and society, building capacity in both its interns and partner organizations to better prepare them to handle the challenges that face our society and future generations.

Science Projects

Students work during a ten-week term on some science project. Past DEVELOP projects are available for viewing on the DEVELOP website.

Project characteristics and creation vary based on location and partner needs. But all projects have the following characteristics:

• Focus on the utilization of NASA Earth Observations
• Highlight the capabilities of NASA satellite and airborne Earth remote sensing science and technology
• Address community concerns relating to environmental issues
• Align with at least one of the nine NASA Applied Sciences Program's Application Areas
• Partner with local, state, regional, federal, international, academic, and/or non-governmental organizations who can benefit from using NASA EOS to enhance decision making
• Meet partner needs by providing decision support tools

More information on the DEVELOP project cycle can be found on their website.

DEVELOP Admissions

Admission to the program is based upon a competitive application process. Applications are available on the DEVELOP website (http://develop.larc.nasa.gov/). Eligible applicants are currently enrolled in high school through graduate school levels and have a minimum 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. DEVELOP accepts applicants from a wide variety of backgrounds. In particular, students with a strong interest in environmental, atmospheric, and Earth sciences, computer science, math, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and remote sensing are encouraged to apply.