The science lab of the International Space Station provides unique insight into, among other things, how the space environment will affect the items sent into space for future missions. Only a rare few ever have the opportunity to take part in the research conducted there and of those few is Cove Searle of Joseph City.
Cove is a sophomore at Joseph City High School but it was through his involvement with 4-H that he received this opportunity with Higher Orbits. The Higher Orbits program strengthens the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills of teens by providing them the opportunity to plan experiments and work one-on-one with actual astronauts. The organization did a four-state collaboration with 4-H for this endeavor and Cove was selected as only one of 12 youth from Arizona through an application process and invited to travel to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to take part in hands-on experiments that could be selected to travel into space for observation.
After he was accepted, Cove flew to Florida in March to get to work. A highlight for Cove was meeting and talking with NASA Astronaut Jim Reilly, who has flown on three space shuttle missions. Another was the Rocket Garden. “When we arrived at Kennedy Space Center and traveled by the Rocket Garden that was really cool. Some were a lot bigger than expected but some were pretty small, which was surprising.”
Once Cove arrived at the center, he was assigned to be one of a four-member team, with each member from a different state. There was a total of 12 teams in all, with each team tasked with designing an experiment that would be considered to be transported to the International Space Station for observation. “It’s a really tight schedule. We had three hours to design the experiment, then we had to create a presentation to go with it. It was pretty nerve-racking.”
The experiment that Cove was involved with consisted of using a cube lab, which is about the size of a tissue box, to test whether or not the high nutrient algae spirulina could be grown in space, and comparing it to how it would behave on Earth. Each team member assigned themselves jobs and Cove was in charge of experimental design and tasked with how to reliably collect data when not in the same vicinity as the experiment.
“Probably my proudest moment was coming up with the concept of pixel measurements. If we put a camera in the cube lab and put a reference, say a one-centimeter ball inside of the container with the spirulina, we can determine the rate of growth. That was purely my job, and I’m very happy with how it turned out.”
Of the 12 teams taking part, the experiment designed by Cove’s team, called the Space Goats, was the one selected to be taken to the International Space Station and put to the test. Space Tango, a company that manufactures health and technology product in space, then worked directly with Cove’s team, using the information he and his teammates put together to create the experiment and also included them in the step-by-step process, providing updates as it progressed.
The space craft SpaceX-27 launched on Tuesday, March 14, with Cove and his family was able to attend at Cape Canaveral. Cove was just two and a half miles from the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center, with the closest observation allowed from the launch being two miles. The space craft arrived at the International Space Station on Thursday, March 16, where the experiment will remain for a 30-day period, with Cove and his teammates to have access to the data through an app that will be provided to them.
Once he returned from Florida on March 16, Cove attended a Higher Orbits event in Phoenix where he was able to meet another NASA astronaut, Don Thomas. “The best thing that happened in Phoenix was that Don Thomas told us that the International Space Station was going to fly overhead that day. By then my experiment would have just barely arrived at the International Space Station. So, I got to see it while I was in Phoenix the day our experiment arrived onboard.”
Cove has been offered to participate again in the program through a Higher Orbits Phoenix program that is not part of 4-H. Those who participated are also provided the opportunity to apply for the international space school that is held every two years in Australia.
As part of the program Cove reached out to other young people to relate the experience, letting them know of the opportunities that are available to them if they would like to participate. “I let them know they can do this. I told them, ‘I did and I am from the same town as you.’”
There are many opportunities available through 4-H that go beyond animal husbandry that involve STEM, sewing, archery, leadership programs and more. To learn more visit https://extension.arizona.edu/4h/navajo. The Higher Orbit program is open to all high school youth and scholarships are available to learn more about this program visit https://higherorbits.org/.
