School trip takes to space

THE stars were the limit for a group of Loreto College Ballarat students who visited the US as part of a nearly-two-week NASA Space Camp excursion earlier this month.

Twenty-one pupils took part in the initiative which focused on delivering science, technology, engineering, arts and maths, or STEAM, activities.

Loreto College principal Michelle Brodrick was one of four staff members who joined the students on the trip and said it was a rewarding experience for everyone involved.

“It is wonderful for these students to be able to go on this trip after such a difficult year last year,” she said.

“The opportunity for them to participate in activities that focus on specialist STEAM learning, and to develop their teamwork and leadership skills has been incredibly valuable.”

Students visited the US Space and Rocket Centre Space Camp at Huntsville, Alabama which focuses on astronaut training.

While there, they engaged with NASA’s STEAM programs by taking part in a simulated spacefaring mission, and building model rockets.

Other activities included launching rockets, wall climbing, scuba training, and multi axis training during which participants are suspended inside a three-ring rotation to simulate spacecraft tumble.

The trip also took them to places like the Kennedy Space Centre at Cape Canaveral, and Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.

Students also got to meet astronauts including Charlie Duke, who is the 10th and youngest person to walk on the Moon.

Eleven of the participating pupils were initially scheduled to attend the camp in September last year before a bus crash on the way to the airport ended the trip.

The Loreto College Ballarat group were also declared the Most Outstanding Team to take part out of their program’s contingent.