NASA needs the help of elementary and high school students for its latest challenge: coming up with the perfect design for containers used in space.

As the agency gears up with plans on taking space exploration to Mars and beyond, finding the right containers to hold everything is essential. Although we don't think about it, astronauts use containers for everything: they have to, otherwise, all their stuff would float away thanks to the lack of gravity in space.

Containers aren't just good for things astronauts store in space, though: they're also used for growing food in space as well as studying insects (including research that could help us learn more about the dangers of long-term space exposure on the human body).

So, NASA set up the 3D Space Container Challenge for students in grades K-12 through the agency's Future Engineers program. The idea is to get the best ideas from all over the country for space containers that astronauts can 3D-print while in space.

Astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) have already proven that sending designs from Earth to space for 3D printing works thanks to a recent demonstration. Last year, a 3D printer on the ISS created the first 3D-printed object in space, a major achievement that will help us as we move beyond the ISS and send astronauts farther than ever before — so far that parts and supplies aren't readily available (which is where 3D printing from Earth becomes helpful).

NASA invites students to participate in the 3D space container challenge and asks that all submissions for designs be submitted by Aug. 2, 2015. NASA plans on announcing the winners of the challenge in October. Prizes include 3D printing gift cards, a 3D printer for schools, a one-week scholarship to Space Camp and a tour of the Endeavour space shuttle with an astronaut.

Interested students can enter the contest on the Future Engineers website.

"NASA in conjunction with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Foundation is issuing a series of 'Future Engineers' 3D Space Challenges for students focused on solving real-world space exploration problems," writes NASA on its website. "Future Engineers is a multi-year education initiative that consists of 3D Space Challenges and curriculum videos on the site that parents and educators can use to get kids designing today."

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