Power to Explore 2021-22 Student Writing Contest
A few students who wrote winning essays for the RPS Power to Explore Student Writing Challenge. Credit: Future Engineers
2021-2022 Power to Explore Contest Winners
EDITOR'S NOTE: The 2021-22 Power to Explore Challenge was open to students in kindergarten through 12th grade in U.S. public, private, and homeschools. Entries were accepted between Feb. 15 and April 13, 2022. Winners were announced on May 24, 2022. Visit the Future Engineers website to read the winning entries: https://www.futureengineers.org/powertoexplore2022
When you see a beautiful image of Pluto, do you ever stop to think about how long it takes to get there and what kind of energy would power a spacecraft to take those pictures? It takes a special kind of power to gather data at the extremes of our solar system, and now, as we celebrate 60 years of nuclear power for space flight, NASA wants to hear about what energizes YOU!
Grades: K to 4
| Winner | City/State | Essay |
|---|---|---|
| Aaron DeSouza | Chino Hills, CA | › Read Essay |
| Arjun Alahari | Ontario, CA | › Read Essay |
| Evan Rios | Bodfish, CA | › Read Essay |
| Luc Basset | Los Angeles, CA | › Read Essay |
| Nikhil Bhavsar | San Jose, CA | › Read Essay |
| Rosie Rothenberg | Sherman Oaks, CA | › Read Essay |
| Caleb Braswell | Bonaire, GA | › Read Essay |
| Jackson Sayles | Byron, GA | › Read Essay |
| Jayla Anderson | Warner Robins, GA | › Read Essay |
| Subham Maiti | Bloomington, MN | › Read Essay |
| Lev Margolis | Orangeburg, NY | › Read Essay |
| Mia Teusan | Hudson, OH | › Read Essay |
| Ari Luster | York, PA | › Read Essay |
| Liam Gustavson | Farmington, UT | › Read Essay |
| Zahra Abbas | Morgantown, WV | › Read Essay |
Grades: 5 to 8
| Winner | City/State | Essay |
|---|---|---|
| Adyant Bhavsar | San Jose, CA | › Read Essay |
| Dane Reed | San Diego, CA | › Read Essay |
| Hasini Sundarraman | Newark, DE | › Read Essay |
| Orelvis Sosa | Miami, FL | › Read Essay |
| Maddy Kim | Belmont, MA | › Read Essay |
| Heidi Jacobs | Haddonfield, NJ | › Read Essay |
| Alexia Matskevich | Brooklyn, NY | › Read Essay |
| Emily Grace Pariti | Garden City, NY | › Read Essay |
| Sarah Phinney | Garden City, NY | › Read Essay |
| Avni Dhargalkar | Chester, PA | › Read Essay |
| Ayush Panda | Yardley, PA | › Read Essay |
| Bryan Milstead | Harrisburg, VA | › Read Essay |
| Aadya Karthik | Redmond, WA | › Read Essay |
| Chloe Steinart | Stanwood, WA | › Read Essay |
| Tovia Chan | Kirkland, WA | › Read Essay |
Grades: 9-12
| Winner | City/State | Essay |
|---|---|---|
Nathan Amador |
Mesa, AZ | › Read Essay |
| Evangeline De Leon | Running Springs, CA | › Read Essay |
| Linh (Kelly) Ninh | Westminster, CA | › Read Essay |
| Jake Segal | New York, NY | › Read Essay |
| Samantha Smith | Canton, GA | › Read Essay |
| Caleb Andrew Pereda | Dededo, GU (Guam) | › Read Essay |
| Andrew Visconti | Freehold, NJ | › Read Essay |
| Lili Westerhuis | Venice, FL | › Read Essay |
| Zhixin Li | Millbrook, NY | › Read Essay |
| Elizabeth Czajkowski | Ivyland, PA | › Read Essay |
| Lindsay McBride | Haverford, PA | › Read Essay |
| Jean Galliano Vega Diaz | Carolina, PR (Puerto Rico) | › Read Essay |
| Annie Hu | Collierville, TN | › Read Essay |
| Jenn Yin Tay | Mclean, VA | › Read Essay |
| Nicole Deng | Fairfax, VA | › Read Essay |
NASA has partnered with Future Engineers to host a writing challenge for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. This contest gives students an opportunity to learn more about Radioisotope Power Systems that provides the power to explore at the extremes of our solar system and to celebrate their own unique power.
