SCHOOL and college students from Ayrshire will be aiming for the stars this summer as they embark on a unique mission of discovery.
Two hundred of them will work with Britain’s most-experienced astronaut, Mike Foale and other Nasa leaders on a week-long programme developing ideas for a space exploration experiment. The winners will then see their idea launched to the International Space Station.
The Ayrshire College Foundation is funding the 2016 Mission Discovery programme, developed by the International Space Station Educational Trust (ISSET) and hosted by Prestwick Airport, which is bidding to become the UK’s first spaceport.
All three council areas in Ayrshire will put forward 50 pupils for the week-long adventure, while Ayrshire College will select 50 students from its science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses.
Primary school pupils will not miss out. They will take part in a competition to design a “mission patch” for the Mission Discovery Ayrshire 2016 programme.
Every primary in Ayrshire will submit a design to be judged internally by each of the local authority areas in East, North and South Ayrshire. They will submit the winning designs to a neutral judging panel including ISSET and Nasa staff who will select the overall winner.
There is a huge incentive for the pupils to win the first stage of the competition, as each of the three schools to make the final shortlist will receive a visit from Foale – the first Briton to perform a spacewalk.
“I’m delighted to be working with ISSET again to deliver Mission Discovery to the young people of Ayrshire,” said Foale.
“This is a unique collaborative partnership between three local authorities and Ayrshire College. I highly commend this approach, in essence, a reflection of the international collaborative effort responsible for the creation of the International Space Station.
“One winning team’s experiment will be blasted off into space to the ISS and I encourage all the participants to do their very best and I wish them good luck.”
The Ayrshire College Foundation was set up to advance education by providing financial support for projects and activities carried out and supported by Ayrshire College.
Its chairman, John Rainey, said: “The foundation is very pleased to be funding the staging of this really innovative programme in Ayrshire.
“It promotes the importance of STEM subjects and is an opportunity for 200 students to participate in a truly unique programme. We hope it is the start of many similar educational projects that the foundation can promote in Ayrshire.”
Heather Dunk, principal of Ayrshire College, added: “Mission Discovery is a fantastic way to showcase the importance and value of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, areas which are vital to Ayrshire’s economy. and a priority for Ayrshire College. “
ISSET founder and chief executive Chris Barber said the event had an eye on the future.
“Mission Discovery is there to encourage the scientists, technologists, engineers, mathematicians and leaders of the future,” he said.
“With Prestwick Airport’s bid as a spaceport, strong local industrial partners and excellent education providers in the area, there is a real opportunity in the future for Ayrshire’s young people.
“Over the week, they will be inspired by our team from Nasa and our visiting astronaut, Mike Foale. Mike is an astronaut legend. He has been on six space missions, was the first Briton to walk in space as a Nasa astronaut, spent more than over 374 days in space and was instrumental in saving the MIR space station and crew in 1997. This is a once-in-a-lifetime learning opportunity.”
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