NASA Names Winning Experiments In Kids Micro-G Challenge
HOUSTON -- Astronauts aboard the International Space Station this
spring will conduct six experiments designed by middle school
students from across the country. The winning proposals of the "Kids
in Micro-g" Challenge are from California, Idaho, Montana, New York,
Pennsylvania and Washington state.
In its second year, the program offers students in fifth through
eighth grades an opportunity to design experiments or simple
demonstrations for testing both in the classroom and in the station's
microgravity environment.
A team of representatives from NASA centers selected the winners from
among 62 proposals. The experiments will study the effect of
weightlessness on various subjects and show what the environment
reveals about the laws of physics.
"This is a wonderful opportunity for these students to learn how
scientists and astronauts work together to develop new technologies
for space exploration and to learn more about how things work on
Earth," said Mark Severance, International Space Station National
Laboratory Education projects manager at NASA's Johnson Space Center
in Houston. "By engaging students in interesting science experiments,
teachers can pique a child's interest while helping develop
higher-level thinking skills."
The winning experiments came from students at these schools:
-- Chabad Hebrew Academy in San Diego, for "Attracting Water Drops."
This experiment will determine if a free-floating water drop can be
attracted to a static charged rubber exercise tube.
-- Neighborhood After School Science Association in Ava, N.Y., for
"Flight of Paper Rockets Launched by Air Cannon." This experiment
will determine the direction and distance traveled by a paper air
rocket launched in microgravity.
-- Key Peninsula Middle School in Lakebay, Wash., for "Pondering the
Pendulum." This experiment will examine the effects of microgravity
on a pendulum.
-- Potlatch Elementary in Potlatch, Idaho, for "Pepper Oil Surprise."
This experiment will investigate the interaction of liquid pepper/oil
and water in a plastic bag in microgravity.
-- Gate of Heaven School in Dallas, Pa., for "Buoyancy in Space." This
experiment will determine if the buoyancy of an object is affected in
a microgravity environment.
-- Will James Middle School in Billings, Mont., for "A Comparison of
Dispersion of Liquid Pepper under Microgravity and Earth Conditions."
This experiment will compare the dispersal of liquid pepper in
microgravity to Earth's gravity.
The apparatus for the experiments was constructed using the same
materials as in a tool kit provided to astronauts on the space
station. The materials in the kit are commonly found in the classroom
and used for science demonstrations. The experiments will take no
more than 30 minutes to set up, run and take down.
For more information about Kids in Micro-G, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_
For more information about NASA's education programs, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/education
For more information about the International Space Station, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
Source: NASA
