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| Students put science and math to practical application by climbing into simulators that create the same sensations felt by astronauts. They discover that while astronauts play the glamour role in space exploration, every job is important and knowledge and teamwork are keys to success. |
It is Thursday. A space shuttle launch is only seconds away and mission control specialists attentively study their computer monitors as the shuttle crew braces.
Liftoff!
Inside the shuttle, the crew experiences the thrust as the shuttle soars into space. Mission specialists follow the flight on their monitors. The launch is an exhilarating, unqualified success--but it is just one of several taking place today at U.S. Space Camp.
In the 10 years since the Space Camp program opened in 1982 in Huntsville, Ala., it has become the most active "launching pad" in the world, involving more than 128,000 students in space missions including participation by some scientists, engineers and cosmonauts of the former Soviet Union.
But the real mission of Space Camp has been to use the excitement of the space program to launch an interest in science, math and technology in the minds of young people.
A tuition-based, non-profit, educational organization with strong corporate support, Space Camp offers programs for fourth through 12th grades.
The young men and women participating in today's mission take great pride in their accomplishments--the Space Camp curriculum and missions are tailored after NASA training programs, offering tracks of study in technology, engineering and aerospace.
The spacious training center, where the simulated shuttle launches occur, is modeled after NASA's astronaut training facility at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The cavernous center is a beehive of activity. Groups of young men and women, many wearing blue flight suits, gather near one or another of five space-shuttle simulators named Atlantis, Columbia, Discovery, Endeavor and Enterprise. The simulators have full- mock-ups of shuttle cockpits, and display computer-generated images on screens as the missions progress.
"We have three groups, explained Edd Davis, a spokesman for the Space Camp. "We've got Space Camp, which is fourth, fifth and sixth graders; Space Academy, level one, which is seventh, eighth and ninth graders; and Space Academy level two, 10th, 11th and 12th graders.
Davis said about one-third of the students in the three programs are females. In Aviation Challenge, a jet-pilot program, the male-female ratio is 50-50, he said.
"The interest on the side of women in engineering, space exploration and aviation is increasing, and I think that is reflected here. Many of the counselors in the program are college students. One counselor, Spencer Phillips, attended Georgia Tech for two years before his family moved to Huntsville, where he is now working toward an electrical engineering degree.
"This is a five-day program," said Phillips, a Space Academy, level one, counselor. "We come in Sunday morning and register the students and start training that night. We don't stop training and running missions until Friday morning. The kids have a really good time, and that's what we want them to do.
"There are anywhere from 18 to 21 members on a team," said Phillips. "Two team leaders are assigned to a team--one for day and one for night. This team does everything together. They perform these missions as a team, and do all the course simulators and activities as a team."
The students and counselors bunk in the Space Habitat, a four-story dormitory inspired by space station concepts. The complex has six horizontal "tubes," each longer than a football field, divided into six-person sleep stations.
The challenge at Space Camp is a mixture of class work and active participation. Students study the history of rocketry, then build and launch their own rockets.
The core of Space Camp is hands-on. Students put science and math to practical application by climbing into simulators designed to create the same sensations felt by astronauts as they train to work in space and walk on the moon. They assume roles in a re-created mission control and board space shuttle simulators to conduct their own shuttle missions. They discover that while astronauts play the glamour role in space exploration, every job is important and knowledge, teamwork and leadership are keys to success.
Former astronaut Mike Mullane, a veteran of three space shuttle flights, and who served as a resident astronaut for the summer, said the Space Camp program is designed to make learning fun.
"I'm certain that kids attending Space Camp and learning in a fun way are going to go back and pursue science and engineering studies more vigorously than if they had not been here," Mullane said. "I like to think of it as a cross between the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum and Disneyland."
In addition to Space Camp, advanced programs are offered. Costs are reasonable, ranging from $425 to $750 depending on the program and time of year.
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| Space Camp is designed to encourage young people to pursue careers in aerospace, science, math and related fields. |
The Georgia Tech Alumni association is working in partnership with the U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., to support educational advancement in science, math and technology.
A portion of the costs of any member of the Georgia Tech family--alumni, faculty, staff, and friends--who attends Space Camp will go toward supporting student recruitment programs and scholarships at Georgia Tech.
Space Camp has received the endorsement of Richard H. Truly, AE '59, astronaut and former chief administrator of NASA.
"As an astronaut, NASA administrator and Georgia Tech graduate, I am very pleased to support the new partnership between Tech and the U.S. Space Camp," Truly said. "The Space Camp programs provide students a unique hands-on experience which may serve as the catalyst to encourage interest and further study in science and technology."
John B. Carter Jr., IE '69, executive director of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association, said, "It is critical to the future of our country that we support programs which encourage young people to begin study of science and math at an early age. The U.S. Space Camp program is a great vehicle for such encouragement in an atmosphere which offers an unforgettable experience for students and adults."
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| Space Camp team leader Jenny Stewart checks the settings in a shuttle cockpit mock-up at the center in Huntsville. |
U.S. space Camp graduates give the program a thumbs-up. A recent survey of 1982-86 Space Camp participants gave the program high scores.
After attending Space Camp, 87 percent of the respondents said they took more science courses, primarily in aerospace and engineering, and 80 percent said they were inspired to take more math, specifically calculus and algebra. Some 41 percent of college majors said their experience at Space Camp was a key factor in their choice of curriculum; 87 percent chose engineering, math or science as their course of study. and 98 percent of the respondents said they had a significant worthwhile experience at Space Camp, while 81 percent said the program has had a meaningful impact on their lives. Almost half of those surveyed said they made a career decision based on their Space Camp participation.
U.S. Space Camp director Edward O. Buckbee said the survey results show today's generation of young people are achievers when given the proper motivation, inspiration and direction.