Registration begins May 1, 2019, for ZERO-G‘s nationwide contest Mission: Microgravity for educators to test their research on board G-FORCE ONE.
ZERO-G is asking science classes in grades 8-12 to create a video showcasing a handheld, creative, and thought-provoking experiment that can be conducted under microgravity conditions. One lucky teacher will get to board the company’s specialized aircraft, G-FORCE ONE, as they test their experiment over the course of 15 parabolas.
“We wanted to give teachers and students the chance to discover and explore together,” said Terese Brewster, CEO of ZERO-G. “We are excited to share our resources with curious classrooms and we can’t wait to see the amazing research these groups will conduct.”
Once the experiment is created, teachers must post a video submission on their preferred social media platform. The video must include:
- Details of the experiment and research methods,
- Information on what the group hopes to learn from flying with ZERO-G,
- An explanation on why the experiment and teacher should experience microgravity.
Videos will be accepted starting May 1, 2019, until May 7, 2019. Entries can be posted once a day on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and/or YouTube and must include the hashtag #MissionMicrogravity to count as an entry. The winning teacher will be selected on May 8, 2019.
G-FORCE ONE, ZERO-G’s specially modified Boeing 727, provides a unique platform for student groups, universities, commercial companies, and others to test research and equipment bound for the International Space Station and beyond. By using a parabolic flight pattern to produce up to 30-second periods of microgravity, including Martian and Lunar gravities, ZERO-G gives researchers the opportunity to conduct hands-on testing and collect data in-person.
I went to the Zero G website and there is no mention of a contest there. All of the educational links are tied to programs that are out of reach for any public school teacher over every known (there are 2 teachers in my family). Their educational experiment flights can cost $59,000. As fascinating and educational as these may be, that isn’t in the realm of possibility for a public school teacher, no matter how good they are. It was strange to not find any links on the Zero website describing a contest that could result in a worthy experiment being accepted free of charge. This story has appeared in several aviation journals and now I wonder if it is true, or just a hair and switch effort to sell more flight to paying customers.
Cool come up with. This is a great opportunity to experience the effect of microgravity. It is possible to read about this a thousand times, but to see and experience this is quite different.