What started off in 2009 as the space settlement designing journey continues to stand out in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Space Settlement Design contest for the sixth consecutive time.
Of the 13 projects presented by students of Ravindra Bharathi School (RBS), four (three from Dwarakanagar branch and one from Hyderabad branch) have been selected for the 33 International Space Development Conference (ISDC-2014), to be held in Los Angeles from May 14 to 18.
Among the total participants representing the school, 20 will be heading to the US to give poster presentations on the projects. The space colony ‘Schone Welt’, created close to Callisto (moon of the planet Jupiter) with its unique scientific techniques such as artificial ozone layer, made the project grab first position. “We were excited to see our projects getting recognised among 592 projects submitted by 1,536 students across the world,” says Jagdeesh, Class IX student.
With a team of five students, ‘Dante Deo’, another space settlement design, secured second prize. “The project stands out for its special feature of creating artificial rain using simple principle – evaporation and condensation,” says Chandan, Class IX student.
‘Vilaya Rakshakam’, space colony discovered by a five-member team, bagged honourable mention prize. “This space settlement not only accommodates 10,000 people in times of disaster but also protects them against asteroid strikes,” says R. Navya, one of its team members.
‘Arcturus’, project created by RBS from Hyderabad, received second prize. Dean of the school G.R. Vasantha said it was teamwork of two-and-a-half months where students and teachers involved themselves without impacting the study hours. The selected team members are now eager to present their creations in the international contest.
