In which I become... SPACE JUDGE

Oh, I do love good news. A few days ago I wrote about a small group of aerospace experts who put up a Kickstarter project to launch a small satellite. The news? It's fully funded! That means this satellite will get built and launched into space.

Be aware that, as with most Kickstarter projects, reaching their goal doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't pitch in. More money pledged even after the goal is achieved means more and cooler stuff the project people can do with it!

And in this case, kicking in some cash gives you a chance to quite literally be a part of this mission: Discover Magazine is holding a contest where you can enter to get your experiment performed on this wee satellite. The details can be found here. Here's the basic stuff:

(1) Fund the ArduSat project, for however much or little as you desire. You'll receive a personal code that identifies you as a donor.

(2) Read the contest guidelines here to learn about how you should design and submit your idea.

(3) Enter with this entry form, making sure to include your personal code.

(4) Wait for winners to be announced on July 20th, after judging by Discover blogger Phil Plait, Discover Editor-in-Chief Corey Powell, and an expert panel of judges.

(5) Rejoice!”

Note #4 there: I'm a judge! I'm pleased and honored to be asked to participate in this, and I'm very excited to see what folks come up with. I think this is an excellent project for a high school class or similar groups, and given it only costs a dollar minimum it's well worth the effort.

Very important: the contest ends on July 6, 2012! So get moving. And maybe get your very own idea off the ground, and literally into space.