LITHIA, Fla. — A group of Randall Middle School students are sending their science experiments to the International Space Station in early November.
A cargo resupply mission is scheduled for early next month.
The students will have an opportunity to watch the launch from Kennedy Space Center in Brevard County.
Nathan Bohra and his fellow classmates have been working on the experiments since last year. He wants to know if the Red Garnet Amaranth Microgreen can sustain its germination rate in microgravity and also sustain its nutritional value compared to Earth.
Sanjana Rao also worked on the same experiment.
"It is such an honor because we, as kids, we're kind of the future of this world, so by doing this, we’re kind of paving the way for future experiments and science projects to occur, and by doing this we’re really creating a better future for astronauts and other people," said Rao.
"The purpose of the project is to find a sustainable food source for astronauts that can be used in the future and for regular people on commercial space flights," she added.
Another group of students worked on a second experiment, which will also be sent to space. The experiment looks at the changes in nutritional and germination values of Sesame microgreens in microgravity. The plan is to grow the seeds on Earth and in microgravity and measure the frequency of growth.
Teacher Mary Vaughn said it's a wonderful opportunity for her students.
"It's super inspiring, and that’s exactly why I do it because these students are going to have jobs that haven’t been invented yet, and so they have many, many opportunities to wonder, so to me, I just want to inspire them to do whatever it is that they are meant to do," said Vaughn.
"Students surprise themselves. They say to themselves, wow, I never knew I could do something like this, and now I've done it. Most scientists dream of sending experiments to the space station."
The experiments will stay in space for about four weeks. Students will analyze the results.
"We have to get it back in order to compare the two experiments we have on Earth and the experiment that we sent to space so we can actually see if we did manage to answer our essential question," said Rao.
To view more details on the two science experiments, visit here.
