We Have Lift Off!
12 Santa Sabina students are joining girls from eight other NSW schools to form the largest group of Australian students ever to travel to the US to take part in the world renowned Houston Association for Space and Science Education (HASSE) Space School.
Update from Day 1 & 2 – Bridget
Today, we woke up and went on a 1 hour drive to ATM University. We then had lunch followed by delicious ice-cream! After lunch, we had a lecture about sharks, which was followed by dissecting a ‘Spotted-Dog Shark’ in groups. This was done by first making a cut down the belly of the shark. Next we removed the two livers and the stomach. Some of the groups shark’s were pregnant, so they found baby sharks in the process of dissection.
After the biology course, we went to the ‘Blue Star’ oil rig. This oil rig had a particular design, which was the jacks. These jacks would be pushed down to the floor, which would stabilise the rig. We learnt about the properties of oil, the general life of someone who works on the oil rig, and the designs and engineering concepts of modern oil rigs. We the returned to the ‘Double Tree’ hotel, and prepared for the next day.
Day 3 – By Lily Rose
Today we went to NASA in Houston. We had lunch and watched a presentation from an astronaut named Leroy Chiao and we went to a baseball game. When we were at NASA we walked around for a bit and we actually got to touch a moon rock. Besides the moon rock we got to look at smaller models of rockets. We looked at what it’s like inside a shuttle and the International Space Station (ISS) and we also got to look at a replica of robonaut and learn about its purpose. While we were there we also ran into an ex NASA engineer and he told us about his experience working with NASA. After that we were allowed an hour to do what ever we pleased. My friends and I decided to try out one of the rides which was a simulated jet plane ride that you controlled completely. Every movement you made you could feel because the ride moved in all directions including upside down.
At the astronaut presentation we learnt an extensive amount about space travel and what it’s like to live in space at the ISS. For example the ISS is completely powered by solar panels. We learned that missions at the ISS last for 6-8 months and supply ships (unmanned cargo) are sent up during the mission but more crew isn’t sent up till the end. We learned it takes 90 minutes to orbit the earth in space. It takes around 9 minutes after lift off to reach the ISS. We learned that they have to train for around 3 and a half years and during this training they must learn Russian. It was very inspiring, making us want to join careers involved with STEM especially focusing on becoming an astronaut. Mr Chiao focused on striving for you dreams no matter what they are.
At the lunch we were able to ask Mr Chiao questions. One of the questions asked was what was his greatest fear about entering space and traveling to the ISS. He responded by saying that obviously he was most scared about something going wrong but beside that he said he was anxious about having to eat astronaut food for so long. Another question that was asked was if he was having trouble adjusting to being back in 1g gravity. He said that he didn’t experience what most astronauts do when the get back which is leaving things in mid air and expecting them to stay their yet the objects kept falling to the ground and breaking. He experienced dizziness for a couple of days but after that he said that it wasn’t that bad and it was all worth it because going up to space is an amazing experience. Another question that was asked was which suit he preferred, the Russian or the American. He talked about the pros and cons of each suit explaining that the American is fitted to you exclusively but is difficult to manage but on the other hand the Russian suit is easy to manage but rather uncomfortable. Overall he said he preferred the American suit. This was an important experience because we got to learn a lot more about space travel and living in space so we can later decide weather we want to ever become astronauts and also it was just a fantastic learning experience.
At the baseball game the Houston Astros and the Chicago White Sox were playing. Naturally we all supported the Astros since we were staying in Houston. We were able to buy snacks such as cotton candy and purchase souvenirs at the gift store. Sadly we had to leave 15 minutes early but we later found out that the Astros won the game. This was an important experience because we got to talk to new people but also we were able to relax and have a break from the long day of learning we had. Overall today was a great experience.
Day 5 – By Jade
Today we participated in two events, which were a tour of Rice University and a course in forensic science. First we took a walk around the Uni. We all learnt so much about American Universities and the Rice traditions. I learnt that Rice got their name from a man called William Marsh Rice who left the money to create the University in his will. I also learnt that the colour houses are called colleges and they were named after last names of significant people in the history of the school. After a tour of the University, from north to south, we all gathered for lunch before heading back on the bus.
Later, when we arrived at the Health Museum, we had a speech about carrier objects and that all jobs are linked to STEM subjects. After that we watched a short 4D documentary about germs and bacteria. We then had the opportunity to solve our own investigation. We had the evidence taken at the crime scene and those of the suspects; we also had alibis to work with and many blood and hair samples. We worked in small groups and solved the crime as a team.
After solving the mystery we headed to another section of the museum. We performed experiments such as creating DNA from wheat germs, meat tenderiser and baking power. My group also had time to perform an experiment, which concluded what was the best cleaning agent. We decided out of bleach, hand soap and hand gel the best agent was hand soap. The bleach seemed to clean very little and the hand gel doubles the amount of germs and bacteria. We then returned to our hotel and presented our NASA expert task were we had to study a certain topic based on space, which we studied when we were at the Johnson Space Centre. Then we went to dinner and then packed our bags ready for the fight to Alabama.
Day 5 – By Iva
On day 5 of our trip to America we went on a tour of Rice University and visited The Health Museum where we did a Forensics Course and performed experiments in the DeBakey Cell Lab. The tour of Rice University was led by a student who was completing her final year of medical science. She took us around the university and showed us both the academic and social sides of Rice University. Not only did we get to look at the subject buildings like Maths, Science, English, Technology, Music and Art but we also got to see the cafeteria, lecture rooms, the sport and fitness centre and even the stadium where John F. Kennedy gave his famous “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard” speech. She told us about the numerous different courses offered, the Rice University traditions such as Beer Bike, which, although the name suggests, does not involve any beer. The competitors have to chug a bottle of water and bike around campus, trying to beat the other teams. She also told us about the Sallyport tradition, where for nearly 100 years students have walked through the Sallyport archway, marking the beginning of their journey as Rice students, and will not walk back out in the opposite direction until they have graduated, or they supposedly will not graduate on time. Most students will walk around the entire building to avoid walking back out the archway.
After we completed our tour of Rice University we visited The Health Museum. There we were introduced to some of the staff and learnt a bit about the museum and its staff, who are all volunteers. We then split into two groups, one group worked on the Forensics Course first and the other group went to the DeBakey Cell Lab. In the Forensics Course we were first gained some insight into what it takes to become a forensic scientist and talked about the jobs in forensic science. Then the real test began. We were shown a video about a hypothetical crime scene which contained information on what happened in the 24 hours leading up to the murder, the crime scene itself, and a police interview with all of the characters. We got into five groups and we’re all given an area of forensic science (e.g fingerprint analysis, fibre analysis etc.) and were given 10 minutes to put the clues together and try and solve the case. Then after we became forensic scientists we went to the DeBakey Cell Lab (named after the accomplished medical pioneer, Dr. Michael DeBakey) to analyse a multitude of different things. There were seven different lab benches that were all based on cellular biology, these benches were Cheek Cells, Testing Antimicrobials, Enzymes in Saliva, Blood Bench, DNA Extraction, Mystery Microbes and Giant Chromosomes.. Since there were far too many people to all do each bench at the same time, we again split into groups of four. My group worked on the Blood Bench. At the Blood Bench we analysed sheep’s blood to test it’s blood type and the ratio of red to white blood cells.
Overall day 5 was an exiting and eventful day, with us getting an in-depth tour of the academic and social sides of Rice University, solving a murder mystery and beginning our journey towards being biological scientists.
Day 7 – By Charlotte
Day seven of our American NASA adventure was our second day at space camp in Huntsville, Alabama. We had now settled into what was now going to be our new Huntsville residency for the week and could really start to take advantage of all the fun opportunities presented.
The highlight for me of day seven was our ‘Mission’. This was the first mission that my group had conducted and although we were all nervous, we were excited and eager. Before we started our ‘Mission’ everyone was assigned roles, based on our responses to survey questions and then we were shown to our designated area for a briefing. I was assigned the role of Flight Commander of the International Space Station. We spent an hour with a mentor, learning about the roles and responsibilities that came with our job before beginning our two-hour mission.
Our Mission, which we chose to accept, was to launch a space shuttle, dock it with the space station and then land our shuttle safely. I am happy to report, as the Flight Commander that our Mission was successfully completed whilst we had a lot of fun. It was overall an amazing learning opportunity that I felt very lucky to have experienced.
Later that day we started designing, creating and most defiantly decorating rockets that we would launch later in the week. This was an exciting experience and gave us an insight into how simple a basic rocket is to create. Among these great experiences we also had many other experiences that day including rock climbing, demonstrations about Newton’s laws, going on astronaut training rides and had the opportunity to explore smaller museums throughout the NASA space centre.
Day 9 – by Juliette
It was our last day at space camp. We got to use the M.A.T. This spun us for 45 seconds. It is designed to spin you from the centre of your body so you don’t feel sick. We also did a moon walk. We sat in these chairs that were attached to the roof by a chain and massive springs. This made us feel the same gravitational pull that the moon has. We completed our last mission in the afternoon. I was in mission control as Cap COM. This meant I was communicating with the Orbitor. The mission was an hour long and was successful with the Orbitor making it to the ISS and landing back on Earth. Last we had our graduation ceremony. It was sad knowing the trip was coming to an end and that we would have to say good-bye to the new friends we made. Overall the experience was great.
Wrap Up:
