Clovis Students Offered an Astronauts Mission Simulation
Then, peril ensues. They are told that carbon dioxide is seeping into the air. Their only chance for survival is to work together quickly to solve codes so that oxygen and nitrogen can clear the harmful gas and fill their lungs, allowing them to breathe freely once again.
Sound like NASA gone wrong? Nope, it’s just another day at Buchanan High School in Clovis, CA.
“I wanted to create a simulation project where my students could discover first hand what it might have been like in the late 40’s and early 50’s when NASA evolved from NACA, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics,” said Jim Esquivel, math teacher at Buchanan in Clovis, CA. “I also wanted to give them a platform to develop, enhance, and utilize their mathematics, critical thinking, communication, and leadership skills.”
Esquivel is within a select group of teachers being considered for an Educator Astronaut position offered by NASA. He is a self-described “NASA missionary” and feels that the educational opportunities NASA provides are phenomenal. Incorporating them into the daily curriculum, however, presents a challenge.
Thus commenced the first Student in Space (SIS) Columbia Math Simulation Mission for Buchanan in Clovis, CA. The goal of the mission was to simulate an International Space Station (ISS) mission. The simulation ran the gamut, from astronaut application and selection to the research, design and fabrication of model rockets.
Approximately 100 Advanced Math Analysis and Advanced Placement Calculus BC students were involved in the two-day mission simulation, which deployed Friday, May 19 at 6:30 a.m. and concluded Sunday, May 21 at 9 a.m.
Nicole Jones, a junior at Buchanan in Clovis, CA, served as commander of the five student astronauts locked in the space station simulation, a.k.a. the math department workroom. During that time, she said, their psyches were pushed to the limit.
All clocks were confiscated from the student astronauts. Among other mind-control tests, “mission control” woke them up at 2 a.m., telling them it was daylight and blasted music at the student astronauts during random times throughout their stay.
“They wanted us to show what we knew from calculus under pressure,” said Jones. “Mr. Esquivel wanted us to have a great experience.”
The student astronauts also had the opportunity to eat space food, including dehydrated ice cream. They constructed spacesuits from aluminum foil and duct tape and explored the Buchanan campus in Clovis, CA.
“These kids definitely accomplished their mission simulation. They are already excited and anxious to start planning for next year,” said Esquivel. “All in all, it is their enthusiasm and ideas for the future that I hoped to spark.”
