DONNA.BURRUS@ICLOUD.COM
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The Step 2 Review Panel for the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program has selected the experiment
Reishi Mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum) VS. E. coli and Chronic Myeloid Leukemia as the Somerville,
TN, flight experiment for SSEP Mission 6 to the International Space Station. The members of the student research team pictured above working on the spectrophotometer are Principal Investigator:
Mark Montague, Co-Investigators: Tucker Whittington, Averi Davis, and Harley Wade. These ninth and tenth grade students at Fayette Academy submitted a research project exactly how professional researchers formally compete. Fayette Academy conducted a local Flight Experiment Design
Competition, engaging more than three hundred students in teams of 3-5, with each team proposing a microgravity research project that can be carried out in the mini-laboratory and vying for the community’s single experiment slot. The competition was conducted through formal submission of real (but grade level appropriate) research proposals by the student teams.
Jeff Goldstein, SSEP Creator and Director, stated in an email to SSEP Program Co-Director and
Biology Lab Instructor, Donna Burrus, "SSEP is not a simulation. It is a very real student immersion in space science research, and a remarkable opportunity for Fayette County. SSEP provides each community that participates its own – very real – Space Program".
Each community’s flight experiment was selected through a formal 2-step proposal review process.
The final selection was carried out by the SSEP National Step 2 Review Board, which met at the
Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum. The flight experiment selected has now entered a 4month NASA flight safety review at Johnson Space Center. These steps include laboratory refinement by the student flight team, handover to NanoRacks in Houston for integration into the experiments payload, and payload integration into the ferry vehicle for flight, Mission 6, to the International Space
Station (ISS). SSEP experiment payloads launch from either Cape Canaveral Air Force Station,
Florida, on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, or from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS),
Wallops Island, Virginia, on an Orbital Sciences Cygnus spacecraft.
In order to meet Johnson Space Center’s NASA Toxicology Flight Safety Review requirements the team submitted a detailed formal experimental overview to NCESSE for forwarding to NanoRacks,
LLC
,
the SSEP flight services provider. This week the research team received NanoRacks level one approval. Their experimental details included astronaut interactions, experimental design, and detailed material lists including Material Data Safety Sheets. The team's formal experimental details will now proceed to NASA for flight safety approval.
Burrus said, “This is such an exciting opportunity not only for this team but for all students in Fayette
County. All students will be able to follow this amazing journey online at SSEP.ncesse.org under
Mission 6. Our student team has now transitioned into the United States space program operations.
We are excited about the journey and cannot wait to watch the rocket launch with our teams' experiment onboard. We are so thankful to the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space
(CASIS), National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE), Tennessee Space Grant
Consortium at Vanderbilt University, Fayette County Education Association, Department of
Pathology, St
.
Jude Children's Research Hospital, Dr. Racquel Collins-Underwood, Scientist, Fayette
Academy, Headmaster Ron Canada, Memphis Astronomical Society, West Tennessee STEM Hub, Dr.
Alfred Hall, II, Director, Eads Animal Hospital, Dr. Tim Montague, Veterinarian, and Mr. Tommy
Conn, retired Memphis City Schools’ Science Supervisor. No school in Tennessee has participated in the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program before this year. We are joined on Mission 6 by Knox
County, TN. This is not only a first for Fayette Academy, it is a first for any student in Tennessee. "
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Melissa Norwood, project Co-Director said, "This SSEP project has been an incredible experience. I have seen students who struggle with the content we go over in class, come to me with in depth explanations for their projects, because they have done the background research and they KNOW the material. It has been amazing also to watch formerly timid students gain confidence from their research and interaction with adults, and start to lead their project group effectively. This program has made a very real difference in our students, and I can see that many of them will go on to STEM careers, because of their involvement with this project.”
“Science walks on the shoulders of the giants that came before us,” an encouraging quote by Tommy
Conn, is on the walls of the Fayette Academy Biology lab. “This quote from my father has always reminded me of the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) that provides every student an opportunity to conduct real-world scientific research. Fayette Academy networked with Racquel Collins-Underwood, PhD, a scientist at St
.
Jude Children's Research Hospital
, over six weeks. Dr. Collins-Underwood served as a research consultant for teams at Fayette Academy.
All students were encouraged to reach out to scientists in their teams' field of study
,
" Donna Burrus, project Co-Director, explained. “SSEP is providing the students of Fayette Academy and Tennessee an exciting opportunity to join in an experience they will remember for a lifetime. Students have experienced interactions with STEM professionals and begin their journey towards jobs of the 21st century.”
Terri Reeves, Computer Teacher and SSEP Co-Director said, "As I watched my students incorporate the technology skills they were learning this year into the SSEP project on "Make it Work" Mondays in the computer lab, I was excited to see many spend break time and work as they ate lunch in the classroom striving to improve their research. Combining Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics this year allowed the students to experience real world opportunities of tomorrow. At the conclusion of the year I surveyed my students about bringing more technology into our computer lab classes. Over 85% expressed an interest in computer programming, and because of this excitement, we will add programming to our curriculum in the fall. The opportunities to collaboratively research, work, design, and create important science experiments that will fly to the ISS has definitely sparked an interest in our students that will hopefully continue to inspire them throughout the rest of their lives.
These technology skills and opportunities will prepare our students for the cutting edge technology careers of tomorrow."
The Student Spaceflight Experiments Programs (SSEP) is undertaken by the National Center for
Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE) in the U.S., and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Space Education internationally. SSEP is enabled through NanoRacks LLC, which is working in partnership with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the utilization of the
International Space Station as a National Laboratory. NCESSE, the Clarke Institute, and
NanoRacks are therefore designated SSEP Strategic Partners. To read about the programmatic roles and responsibilities of the SSEP Strategic Partners, visit the SSEP Team page.
SSEP.ncesse.org
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