ABSTRACT
This chapter highlights the accomplishments of the Illinois-Baylor-Davis National Aeronautics and Space Administration Astrobiology Institute (NAI) Education and Public Outreach (EPO), which has engaged more than 100,000 students of all ages from around the world via integrated online, classroom, and wilderness learning opportunities. A formally accredited astrobiology and geobiology course has been offered for each year of the Illinois-Baylor-Davis NAI EPO program. An experimental laboratory apparatus, constructed at the University of Illinois Institute for Genomic Biology (IGB), permits real-time, in-person, and online teaching of hot-spring astrobiology principles to secondary and higher education students. The Research Outreach Carbonate Hot-Spring Simulation project was designed to support a broad range of teachers and students in learning basic hot-spring astrobiology principles, either in person at the IGB or online by accessing the experiment virtually. The Illinois-Baylor-Davis NAI EPO program has been actively engaged with making astrobiology learning experiences a part of major outreach programs within the Graduate College.
