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From left to right, Kevin Czajkowski, Olawale Oluwafemi, and Md. Faisal Karim displaying the STELLA-inspired sensor just after it had passed inspection at Near Space Launch.

University of Toledo graduate and undergraduate students who are part of the Mission EARTH NASA Science Activation funded project, in collaboration with three high schools, are preparing to launch a satellite into space as part of the Dream Big Project, an initiative funded through Near Space Launch and the Don Wood Foundation.

Craig Kohn webinar shareable

On May 20, 2025, NASA hosted a webinar showcasing the STELLA (Science and Technology Education for Land and Life Assessment) project featuring Dr. Craig Kohn from Waterford Union High School.

NASA SEES EarthLens Team and Mike Taylor at AGU 2025

NASA STEM Enhancement in Earth Sciences (SEES) interns Nandini Khaneja, Neev Tamboli, Samuel Bawden, and Jordan Rodriguez presented their innovative EarthLens project at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2025, demonstrating exceptional technical achievement in developing a drone-and-app system that addresses limitations in existing citizen science tools.

John Patrick working with students

Dr. Jan Eitel and his graduate students John Patrick and Tyler Bland from the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) presented their innovative work using STELLA devices to teach elementary school students about remote sensing and climate science.

RAC Team photo

To support learning, the Regional Application Center (RAC) team at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette will highlight their Earth observation education outreach summer workshop program.

Dr. Huitzimengari Campos Garcia

Revolutionary Plant Science: How Students Used NASA STELLA low-cost instruments to ID Plants with Great Accuracy!

Karen Karker class using STELLA

The webinar will have a select panel of STELLA users talking about their experiences using STELLA DIY spectrometers. Bianca Cilento, a graduate student at Rochester Institute of Technology, is using STELLA-Q in her studies. Karen Karker from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry used STELLAs in classroom lessons about the EM spectrum. Peder Nelson is a Sr. Instructor at Oregon State University and Science lead for Land Cover in NASA’s GLOBE Observer and has been using STELLA in conjunction with GLOBE observer.

A woman leans against a multicolored wall, using it as a hard surface as she jots on a piece of paper. Behind her, a man uses a TV-remote-looking STELLA device. The backdrop is bright green grass and a blue sky dotted with white clouds.

STELLA was used as part of a larger Earth Science lesson with the astronaut candidates (ASCAN) in the summer of 2023.

The STELLA Data Viewer can be used to display spectral data for analysis. Above: A middle school student measures a healthy plant using a STELLA-1.1 spectrometer, with the spectral measurements displayed on the Data Viewer.

Introduce students to the concept of spectroscopy and spectral signatures using the STELLA spectrometer.

Kansas City agriculture

Deepen students' understanding of how different wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum, particularly Near Infrared (NIR), can be used to assess plant health.

People looking at solar eclipse

Use a STELLA instrument to assess how changing light levels during a solar eclipse affect spectral responses and temperature.

STELLA poster AGU2023

STELLA Poster AGU2023

STELLA Poster AGU2023 Abstract ID and Title: 1432877: STELLA: An Open-Source DIY Handheld SpectrometerFinal Paper Number: ED31B-0907Presentation Type: PosterSession Number and Title: ED31B: Amazing Technologies…

STELLA interns Christina Ballagh and Sabrina Pillai

As rising seniors, Sabrina Pillai and Christina Ballagh spent 10 weeks building DIY hand-held instruments—40 of them to be exact. Called STELLA, for Science and Technology Education for Land/Life Assessment, the spectrometer serves as a low-cost Landsat outreach & education tool.

EROS 50th STEM event

The 50th Anniversary of the EROS Center: Honoring Five Decades of Innovation Through STEM Outreach Activities By Ellie Leydsman McGinty A Prominent Center for Earth…

Paige Williams showing off measurements from STELLA spectrometer using the STELLA-Dataviewer

Paige Williams, a PhD Candidate at Virginia Tech, led a lecture series on the Landsat Program for the junior/senior level remote sensing course in the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation at VT in February.

Dr. Petya Campbell, Paul Mirel and Jesse Barber using STELLA's over a white reference

Field Measurements of Panels and Grass collected at GSFC on December 21, 2022 Preliminary Results Created by Dr. Petya Campbell, STELLA Lead Scientist Download STELLA…