SSEP Projects Soar

By Masey Zimmerman

For the past seven weeks, the Upper School Science and English classes have been participating in the Student Spaceflight Experiment Program (SSEP). Schools across the country are working on the SSEP project, where they design and create an experiment in order to analyze its reaction in microgravity. Within each science class, the learners can choose one of three roles: SSEP expert, ISS expert, or reporter/writer.

The SSEP experts have been creating microgravity experiments to submit to the nationwide competition in which the winners get the opportunity to send their experiment to the International Space Station. “I have several groups that are working with biological samples… So, frogs, sea monkeys, fish, cancer,” Mrs. Zimmerman said. “I also have a group that’s working on the common cold, and how it affects blood cells in microgravity. And then another group that’s looking at food spoilage in microgravity.” These are just some of the ideas that the learners in science classes have had. The ISS experts have been researching the ISS and the astronauts who have been there. The reporters/writers have been interviewing their peers and facilitators and have been taking photos of the progress of this amazing project. And, finally, the English classes have been writing an essay.

We are coming down to the final days of the SSEP project and are extremely excited to see the product of all of this hard work. We will keep you updated on the results of the competition and how the class presentations go. Stay tuned!