. . . .Student Project Set to Blast Off - May 19, 2004

Student-designed experiment to ride aboard NASA rocket in June

Five Central Park Middle School students and two teachers are on a mission to NASA's Wallops flight Facility in Virginia.  The upcoming trip is a culmination of a student-designed experiment that will measure the effect space flight has on common liquids.

The experiment uses thermochron technology to record fluctuations in the temperature of common liquids such as coffee, tea, tap water, carbonated beverages and pond water when subjected top rocket flight.  Thermochrons are computer chips enclosed in a small stainless steel case.  The data-collecting devices are slightly larger than a nickel.

The trip to Wallops flight facility is a rare opportunity for the students to view a rocket launch and retrieve the experiment upon its return.

"Between their essays, the planning of the experiment and final preparations - even without the trip to Wallops - this has been an incredible learning experience," said Danielle Hartkern, the 6th grade science teacher at Central Park Middle School who helped the students plant he experiment.  "it's made science come alive for them and given them exposure to a wide variety of careers in science.  They're very excited about this."

NASA's FreeSPACE program reserves space aboard an Orion Sounding Rocket for NASA Explorer Schools.  Students are required to fit their experiment in a 7x4x2 inch box, which is packed inside the rocket's nosecone.  It reaches an altitude of slightly more than 27 miles at its highest point.  The flight lasts approximately six minutes.

When the rocket is recovered, the students will download the data from the thermochrons onto laptop computers.  Special software will help to determine what effects, if any, are detected in the liquids as a result of variations in temperature, altitude, velocity, and air pressure.  Graphs and charts representing the data will be developed, interpreted by the students, and conclusions presented to NASA scientists and classmates.  Comparisons will also be noted and hypotheses developed to explain any measurable differences.

Shannon Turnball, Alex Jurczynski, Briana Purtell, Dan Flora and Corinne Higgins were selected to make the trip.  They will depart June 8 and return June 12.

Greg Rice, a 6th grade math teacher at CPMS and Danielle Hartkern, a 6th grade science teacher will accompany the student son the trip.