NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

For many of us, there is an experience that puts us on a path that defines our future careers. These experiences don't come easy. Instead, they challenge us to show ourselves that we are capable of achieving things we didn't think possible. We take on the challenge, overcome it, and set our life on a new course.

Image above: The Rocket On! camp team poses with their rocket prior to its launch. Credit: NASA

Twelve visually impaired and blind high school students recently met such a challenge through a partnership between NASA and the National Federation of the Blind.

The students participated in a week-long rocket science camp July 14-22, 2006, at the federation's Jernigan Institute in Baltimore and at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Va.

Image to left: A student checks the strength of a rocket fin. Credit: NASA

The camp is called "Rocket On!" At the institute, students learned about rocketry during classes and workshops. The students developed and built sensors to measure acceleration, temperature, pressure and roll rate for a payload on a rocket to be launched from Wallops. They also calculated the rocket's performance and trajectory.

The students arrived at Wallops the morning of July 18, and their excitement began to build as launch day grew closer. A full schedule lay ahead of them to meet the next day's launch.

They started with meeting their mentors for the launch. The students were to work with the mentors and assume their NASA personnel positions during the mission. These included the safety officer, payload control, weather officer, mission manager, radar control, public affairs, and, of course, the all-important person -- the button pusher to send the rocket skyward.

Image to right: Students test a sensor for flight. Credit: NASA

Next, they were given a tour of the range control center, followed by the pre-mission briefing. For this briefing, the various support crews report their status for launch. The students' excitement was building with the report that everyone was "go for launch."

After lunch, the students headed for the launch pad. They checked out the blockhouse where some students would support the launch. And they completed a very important task, loading the rocket on the launch rail.

Everything was now ready for launch.

Launch day, July 19, started early as the students learned rocket science isn’t a "9-to-5" job. All hands were at their launch post by 4 a.m. to prepare for the opening of the 6 a.m. launch window. Considering the early morning start, the students were upbeat and ready for the mission. The question on their minds was, "Will our efforts pay off with a successful flight?"

Image to left: Students load the rocket onto the launch pad. Credit: NASA

The morning was looking good. The weather was perfect. No boats were under the rocket's flight path. All systems were "go for launch."

At 22 seconds after 6 a.m., the launch button was pushed. The 10-foot rocket roared off the launch pad. The rocket performed better than the students had projected, reaching an altitude of 6,275 feet. Data was received from all the sensors.

After descending into the Atlantic Ocean on its parachute, the rocket with its payload was recovered by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary from Chincoteague, Va. An hour later, the students had the rocket and payload in hand.

During the post-launch review, the students demonstrated their newly discovered passion for science, engineering and exploration. One student indicated the experience would lead her to pursue a career in a science field, which she had not considered before.

Another student reminded both the students and NASA personnel that this mission was not only for those present, but for visually impaired students nationwide. She encouraged the students to take their knowledge and excitement from the camp and share it with family, friends, other students and parents of other blind children. During the mission, she also expressed strong interest in participating in an internship at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility.

Image to right: The NASA/National Federation of the Blind high-powered rocket sits on the pad ready for its flight. Credit: NASA

Several students expressed appreciation for NASA, as they had been challenged to prove that they were capable of achieving a successful mission. While skeptics had told them it could not be done, the students proved them wrong.

"NASA believes every student has endless capabilities, and we try to reach all students. This is the third year NASA has used its unique educational resources to support the Rocket On! camp," said John Hairston Jr., the agency's acting assistant administrator for education.

After departing Wallops on July 20, the students returned to the Jernigan Institute to begin their data analysis. For this activity, as well as the pre-flight performance analysis, they used MathTrax software, a calculator that enables them to visualize data by translating information into an easily accessible text or audio description.

Developed by NASA's Learning Technologies Project at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston, the free MathTrax computer application may be downloaded from the Internet for Windows and Macintosh platforms at http://prime.jsc.nasa.gov/mathtrax/bviDownload.htm.

The students presented their findings and experiences the morning of July 21 and went on a tour of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., that afternoon.

Through its partnership with the National Federation for the Blind, NASA continues the agency's tradition of investing in the nation's education programs. It is directly tied to the agency's major education goal of attracting and retaining students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (or "STEM") disciplines. To compete effectively for the minds, imaginations, and career ambitions of America's young people, NASA is focused on engaging and retaining students in STEM education programs to encourage their pursuit of educational disciplines critical to NASA's future engineering, scientific and technical missions.

The students who attended the Rocket On! camp took on the challenge, overcame it, and set their life on a new course.

Are you ready for your challenge to put you on the path for a career in science, technology, engineering or math?

Keith Kohler/GSFC