UCF in the News

A fully constructed rover that was due to blast off to the moon next year will instead be dismantled due to budgetary issues, NASA has announced – leading researchers to question whether the space agency is truly committed to landing a crewed spacecraft on the moon in 2026, as it currently claims. The Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) was scheduled to be sent to the moon’s south pole in September 2025 to hunt for water ice. Equipped with a drill, the rover would have looked for ice under the lunar surface in multiple locations, including in some permanently shadowed craters. Phil Metzger at the University of Central Florida says the cancellation is a “very bad mistake” for NASA, especially in light of the agency’s broader goal to land humans at the south pole of the moon in 2026 as part of its Artemis programme. Plans to potentially use the moon’s water ice as a resource for rocket fuel could also be under threat. “Having a rover with a drill is an absolutely vital part of the mission,” says Metzger. “There definitely will be some effect on planning the human missions.”

UCF‘s football practice fields will be renamed the Wayne Densch Practice Complex in honor of a $2.5 million pledge from the Wayne Densch Charitable Trust. It’s all part of a commitment from the former Knights supporter and Orlando businessman, who passed away in 1994 through his charitable trust. “Mr. Densch’s handshake commitment to former Athletic Director Gene McDowell to donate $1M dollars to help save the UCF football team in 1985 is a key cornerstone of his legacy in our community,” John, Michael and Len Williams, trustees of the Wayne Densch Charitable Trust said in a statement. “Our father rightfully continued this legacy of support, and our family is honored by the opportunity we have to continue Mr. Densch’s generosity and dedication to UCF.”

Parkinson’s is the most common motor disorder and second most frequently diagnosed neurodegenerative disease, second only to Alzheimer’s. Almost ten million people are living with it and although there are drugs to treat the disease, many people become resistant to them over the years. Now, a new patch is being tested that could help. “The Parkinson’s patient, they’re losing the dopamine neurons deep in the brain,” said Kiminobu Sugaya, a neuroscientist at the UCF College of Medicine. The technology helps to stop the loss of those neurons through specially designed ceramics wrapped in a rubber blanket. Infrared light travels through the ceramic and activates the neurons. Mice treated with the infrared ceramics had an increase in the number of brain cells in the area associated with Parkinson’s disease and in turn, the mice had better control of their balance and movement. “We are not going to say that this is going to regenerate the neurons, but that this is preventing the loss of the neurons even further,” said Sugaya. The therapy would be delivered through a patch that sits on your head, no surgery needed.

Studies show that 75 percent of non-organic produce has pesticides, and while 86 percent of Americans wash their produce before eating it, washing may not get rid of all of it. A peaches delicate skin makes it easy for chemicals to get inside. One report found 36 types of pesticides on strawberries. Pesticides were found on 91 percent of cherries. And when it comes to spinach and other lettuces some reports claim they are contaminated with what are considered the most potent pesticides used on foods. “The outer layer of the fruit and vegetable is a membrane and that’s permeable, which means that the pesticide can soak inside the produce, and it can be very difficult to remove,” said Steven Burroughs, Instructor University of Central Florida in the Department of Health Sciences. Despite all of this, the CDC says washing your produce is one of the safest things to do if you plan on eating it. First, wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds. “By using 10 seconds of water, you’re able to keep the integrity and structure of the fruit and vegetable so that you get the best quality and remove some of the pesticides as best as you can,” explained Burroughs.

A team of five in The University of Central Florida’s College of Sciences and College of Engineering and Computer Sciences, led by their Center for Research in Computer Vision, recently received a National Science Foundation grant to help low-income students seeking education in artificial intelligence.

Extra-long sheets. Shower shoes. The wall hooks and putty that hold things up but don't leave marks. Most colleges provide a list of things that new students might bring if they're living on campus, and most big-box stores stock all of it and then some. But there's another list you may want to consider, containing things that aren't at the end of any Target aisle or on anyone's Amazon wish list. While privacy laws may keep a parent from learning much about a child’s illness at college, students who get there before they turn 18 may not be able to get some kinds of care at all without explicit parental permission. The University of Central Florida, for instance, requires a consent form when such students seek counseling. Karen R. Hofmann, director of the school’s counseling and psychological services, suggests talking about it and not just signing it. If a teenager has never seen a therapist before, parental encouragement can reduce any reluctance or shame in doing so.

SpaceX’s plan to launch its monstrous Starship-Super Heavy two-stage tandem from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center caught the attention — and concern — of two rival space companies that warn federal officials the up-to-492-foot-tall rocket will be too untested, too dangerous and too potentially disruptive for the nation’s busiest spaceport and the surrounding environment. United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin — which both have significant footprints on the Space Coast and view SpaceX as direct competition — have submitted written concerns to the Federal Aviation Administration. Phil Metzger is director of the Stephen W. Hawking Center for Microgravity Research & Education at the University of Central Florida. In an email, he said he thinks the ULA statement about Starship is fair, because it asks the FAA to do its job while noting potential impacts on the environment, neighboring communities, and launch operations of other companies at the Cape. “They noted that it is in the national interest to have multiple healthy launch companies for assured access to space so the operations of one company should not shut down its competitors. I think this is all legitimate and should be emphasized,” Metzger said. However, he said he thinks Blue Origin made “a serious mistake” by suggesting a cap on the Starship launch rate. “This would be the least creative and least helpful solution for potential problems at the Cape,” Metzger said.

Addition Financial Credit Union is joining the University of Central Florida as its latest Pegasus Partner. The Lake Mary-based credit union joins AdventHealth, Orlando Health and Nemours Children’s Health in an enhanced relationship with the university. Besides growing the number of internships available to UCF students and coordinating with faculty to meet business challenges, Addition Financial President and CEO Kevin Miller will serve on the President’s Industry Advisory Council, who will directly work with UCF President Alexander Cartwright and others tied to current topics in the business world. In total, the credit union will grow from 10 to 25 interns.

NASA's first asteroid sample is the most pristine sample of its kind. Now, back on Earth, the sample from asteroid Bennu has already delivered surprising findings about the early solar system and where the asteroid might have come from.