NASA Names Winning Experiments In Kids Micro-G Challenge | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.07.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.08.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.09.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-07.10.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.11.25

Sun, Feb 06, 2011

NASA Names Winning Experiments In Kids Micro-G Challenge

Older Elementary Kids Get To Design Experiments To Fly In Space

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, CA 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, NY, 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, WA, for "Pondering the Pendulum." This experiment will examine the effects of microgravity on a pendulum.
  • Potlatch Elementary in Potlatch, ID, 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, MT, 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.

FMI: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/nlab/experimentchallenge.html

Advertisement

More News

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (07.10.25): Performance-Based Navigation (PBN) [ICAO]

Performance-Based Navigation (PBN) [ICAO] Area navigation based on performance requirements for aircraft operating along an ATS route, on an instrument approach procedure or in a d>[...]

NTSB Prelim: Cessna 172

The Airplane Came To Rest Underneath A Set Of Damaged Power Distribution Lines On The Floor Of A Coulee On June 19, 2025, at 1412 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172K airplane, N7>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (07.10.25)

Aero Linx: FAA Managers Association (FAAMA) Recognized by the FAA, FAAMA is a professional association dedicated to the promotion of excellence in public service. The Association i>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: The Big Business of Diminutive Powerplants

From 2023 (YouTube Edition): Jet Central Micro-Turbine Engines Impress Founded in the late-1990s, Mexico City-based Jet Central produces a unique and fascinating line of micro-turb>[...]

Airborne 07.11.25: New FAA Bos, New NASA Boss (Kinda), WB57s Over TX

Also: ANOTHER Illegal Drone, KidVenture Educational Activities, Record Launches, TSA v Shoes The Senate confirmed Bryan Bedford to become the next Administrator of the FAA, in a ne>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC