Spinning on the Zero-G Plane
In October of 2009, our Microgravity Team applied to the Systems Engineering Educational Discovery (SEED) Program. This was the third year for a Carthage team to have the opportunity to participate.
We worked with Lockheed Martin to develop a scaled model of the propellant tanks of the Orion spacecraft to study the propellant sloshing.
In April 2010 we traveled Houston to NASA Johnson Space Center and flew on the Zero-G plane, nicknamed the “Vomit Comet”, which flies in parabolic maneuvers to simulate reduced gravity. We experience zero, martian and lunar gravity.
Carthage team with Barbara Morgan
While in Houston, we got to visit and tour many cool places like the Neutral Buoyancy Lab. We also met Barbara Morgan. She is amazing and our team (seven girls out of eight) was ecstatic to have the opportunity to talk with her.
In December 2010, we were really excited to hear that we get to participate again this year! We are currently working on the project, and we are working with an engineer from Kennedy Space Center to non-invasively measure fluid volumes inside tanks in reduced gravity using PZT technology. It’s been great so far and I know we are all anticipating April when we get to return to Houston to fly on the Weightless Wonder again.
Stephanie Finnvik 