More than 2,000 curious visitors from Newport News and the surrounding Hampton Roads region of Virginia flocked to Christopher Newport University (CNU) on May 31, 2025 for their annual STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics) Community Day, and the NASA eClips team from the National Institute of Aerospace’s Center for Integrative STEM Education (NIA-CISE) made sure every one of them left with their eyes—and imaginations—fixed on the Sun.

At the heart of the NASA eClips exhibit were NIA’s STEM Student Ambassadors—a team of carefully selected high school students from the Tidewater region of Virginia who underwent extensive training with NASA eClips educators during the summer of 2024. These bright, enthusiastic young leaders are passionate about communicating about and advocating for STEM. The STEM Student Ambassador program is made possible through a Coastal Virginia STEM Hub grant from the Virginia General Assembly and is already having an impact.

Throughout the day, the Ambassadors engaged learners of all ages with two creative, hands-on experiences that connected STEM and the arts:

• Chalk Corona – Using black construction paper and vibrant chalk, participants recreated the Sun’s corona—the super-hot, gaseous “crown” that’s visible during a total solar eclipse. While they shaded and smudged, the Ambassadors explained why the corona is so important to solar research and handed out certified solar viewers for safe Sun-watching back home.
• Pastel Auroras – Visitors also discovered how solar wind, storms, and coronal mass ejections (aka Sun “sneezes”) spark Earth’s dazzling auroras. Guided by the Ambassadors, budding artists layered pastels to capture swirling curtains of light, tying recent mid-Atlantic aurora sightings to real-time space weather.

Throughout the day, the Ambassadors’ energy was contagious, turning complex heliophysics into hands-on fun and opening eyes to the opportunities and careers that await in STEM. Judging by the smiles—and the dusting of chalk and pastels—NASA eClips’ presence was, quite literally, the “crowning” touch on an unforgettable community celebration of STEM.

The NASA eClips project provides educators with standards-based videos, activities, and lessons to increase STEM literacy through the lens of NASA. It is supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AB91A and is part of NASA’s Science Activation Portfolio. Learn more about how Science Activation connects NASA science experts, real content, and experiences with community leaders to do science in ways that activate minds and promote deeper understanding of our world and beyond: https://science.nasa.gov/learn

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