After months of publicity, fundraising and preparation, two Greenstone high school students and a local teacher will soon be on our way to represent Canada at International Space Camp at the US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville AL. There, we will join contingents of aspiring astronauts from up to 35 countries around the world as well as all 50 American states for a week of extensive training and simulations that will broaden our understanding of the Space Program, the universe and our place in it.
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| PLT Devon Couch (left), MS Ben Mannisto (centre) and CDR Benjamin Jewiss show off the "right stuff" at Nakina ON's annual Canada Day celebrations. |
Pilot Devon Couch of Geraldton will find himself in command of the spacecraft in his crew’s simulated space missions. His training will focus on aeronautic design and the science of orbital mechanics, and he will take to the virtual sky in an F-18 jet fighter simulator, and experience 3.2 times the force of gravity in a High-G centrifuge. Meanwhile, Mission Specialist Ben Mannisto of Longlac will study space physiology in order to design and test spacesuits and to prepare for extravehicular activities in the stomach-churning Multi-Axis Trainer and the microgravity-simulating Underwater Astronaut Trainer. Finally, teacher Benjamin Jewiss of Nakina will participate in authentic astronaut training simulators and activities developed to promote learning in a classroom setting.
Getting to this point has not been easy, but as the late American president John F. Kennedy said about to the Moonshot in the 1960s, we do these things “not because they are easy but because they are hard.” Jewiss’ previous experience at the US Space and Rocket Center, including being the only non-American participant in the invitation-only Advanced Space Academy for Educators in 2014, as well as his noted efforts in the classroom and the community to promote interest in rocketry and space science, led to his being invited to lead the sole Canadian contribution to International Space Camp. Couch and Mannisto were put through a comprehensive interview process and have led efforts to raise the substantial funds necessary to make this trip a reality.
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| Couch and Mannisto share their knowledge of Newtonian physics as they teach Canada Day revellers how to build their own foam rockets. |
“Support from the community, and further afield really, has been astounding,” says Jewiss. “We have had donations of $100, $200, $500, even $1000, not only from established community service groups including Moosecalac, the Royal Canadian Legion, Nakina and Longlac's Fire Departments and the Nakina Sunrise Seniors’ Club, but also from ordinary people connected to Greenstone, the team or who just happen to be advocates of science and space exploration.” One such donation came from an alumna of Geraldton Composite High School now living in Thunder Bay who stated her certainty that the Team "will do us all proud and that the boys will gain so much from the experience."
“That’s really what this is all about,” says Jewiss. “The Space Race of 50 years ago led to the invention or popularization of Teflon, Velcro, GPS, cordless power tools and memory foam. I can't promise that anything like that will come out of International Space Camp, but what we will see is an increase an awareness and appreciation for not only space science, but also aspects of technology, engineering and mathematics that have real, down to earth applications in Greenstone. Our goal has always been to really bring this experience back to our community.”
International Space Camp Team Canada has already begun its outreach programs. A group of Air Cadets from the local 227 Squadron was both amazed and horrified by a presentation on some of the realities of space exploration -- including “Mr. Thirsty,” the aptly-named toilet on the International Space Station. The team also led a rocketry workshop at the Nakina Canada Day celebrations on 1 July, giving local children of all ages the opportunity to demonstrate Newton's Third Law of Motion with their own foam rockets and to experience the thrill of a model rocket launch. The team will continue these programs after their return from Alabama and hope to have the opportunity to share their knowledge and experience with students in local schools.
Be sure to watch for such outreach programs in the fall. You can also follow the adventures of International Space Camp Team Canada by visiting our blog here at http://iscteamcanada.blogspot.ca/ or following the Twitter hashtag #ISCCanada.
