There's
no big blastoff but elementary school kids from Waterloo,
IL, last month experienced some realistic simulation of
what astronauts do while they're in space.
Groups of kids from W. J. Zahnow Elementary School spent
2-hour sessions at the Challenger Learning Center near Ferguson.
Part of the time was spent doing experiments in a realistic
mockup of the International Space Station (ISS) that's orbiting
above the Earth.
When they were finished, many thought it would be cool
to have a career in space when they grow up.
Emily
Andres |
But, they also recognized dangers. Many thought the scariest
part was when they returned to Earth from their space journey.
Eight-year-old Emily Andres said she was "afraid the vibrations
of the landing would tickle my stomach."
Eight-year-old Alex Galvan said he'd worry about "falling
back down" during the re-entry phase of the journey.
Alex
Galvan |
The kids saw a movie of both the launching and landing
of the space shuttle during a round-trip journey to the
ISS. Included in the film were scenes of the astronauts
vibrating in their chairs during both liftoff and landing.
One of the things that impressed all of the kids was the
massive size of everything associated with the space shuttle
program.
Ms. Jennie Bellinger of O'Fallon, Ill., was one of the
"commanders" leading the kids during their visit. She noted
the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at Cape Canaveral, FL,
was the largest one-story building in the world.
During the film, she pointed out the comparative tiny size
of SUVs and people with the massive space shuttle with its
solid-fuel and external liquid-fuel rockets.
The St. Louis Challenger Learning Center is one of 50 across
the country that help kids understand outer space. During
the 2007-2008 school year, kids from over 300 area schools
will visit the center.
But, the center is also available for Boy and Girl Scout
and other groups. There's even times for private birthday
parties.
(For information how your school or even small groups
can participate, visit www.clcstlouis.org
or call (314) 512-6205. The center is located north
of I-70 off Florissant Rd. just south of Ferguson.)
Ms. Tasmyn Front is director of the Learning Center. She
said the center currently has three programs for kids. They
are Voyage to Mars, Rendezvous with a Comet and Mini
Discovery Mission.
Next fall, the center will add a Mission to the Moon program,
she said.
The tour of the center for the Waterloo, IL, kids started
with them entering a room outfitted like the shuttle spacecraft.
They watched through portholes filmed scenes of the blastoff
and docking at the ISS.
Once docked, kids moved through an "airlock chamber" into
the ISS lab.
Alexis
Pinion and James Moody check planets
Seven-year-old Alexis Pinion and 8-year-old James Moody
worked on lining up the planets in the Earth's galaxy around
the Sun. They noted that Pluto was missing. That reflects
a recent scientific judgement that Pluto isn't actually
a planet in the Earth's galaxy.
Summer
Geske and Emily Andres weigh meteorites |
Seven-year-old Summer Geske and Emily Andres teamed to
figure out the metric weight of meteorite fragments, using
a balance beam.
Another lab station had Alex Galvan and 7-year-old Wyatt
Shields use a microscope to identify harmful germs. Once
they identified a harmful germ, the kids tossed the sample
into a hazardouse materials container.
Alex
Galvan and Wyatt Shields study germs
Eight-year-old Hailey Nunnery and 7-year-old Erin Shelby
used gloves attached to an airtight chamber to measure fluid
densities.
Hailey
Nunnery and Erin Shelby measure densities
After returning to Earth, the kids got to see pictures
of real astronauts from the St. Louis area. They included
Robert Behnken of Creve Coeur and Sandy Magnus of Bellville,
IL.
Astronaut Behnken is to pilot a shuttle mission later this
year and Astronaut Magnus is training for a several-month
stay on the ISS.
Noah
Meppiel |
In all, 10 area astronauts are pictured on the Center's
Wall of Fame.
When asked about the coolest part of being an astronaut,
Wyatt Shields and Alex Galvan agreed it was the speed. But,
8-year-old Noah Meppiel said his favorite was the ISS.
The three boys were unanimous is their career choice.
They all wanted to be astronauts.
