October 15, 2008
Sometimes Workforce Development is Rocket Science
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 15, 2008
California Space Authority
Contact: Eric A. Daniels
916-551-1543
eric.daniels@californiaspaceauthority.org
Students Energized with Hands-on Learning
MOJAVE, CA – Learn by doing has long been the motto of many California State University campuses and at the Long Beach campus (CSULB), that’s just what they are doing. In conjunction with Garvey Spacecraft Corporation (GSC) and the California Space Authority (CSA), 42 students from numerous campuses have successfully launched a 500 pound liquid-fueled rocket over the skies of the Mojave Desert. Funded by the US Department of Labor’s Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) initiative, the project was heavily focused on demonstrating the effectiveness of ambitious hands-on opportunities in preparing the next generation of the nation's technical workforce.
“The space enterprise community has expressed the need for hands-on lessons that will teach to the workforce issues it faces,” stated Andrea Seastrand, Executive Director of CSA. “This exercise is exactly the type of opportunity to provide real-life, real-time learning.”
The rocket, known as Prospector 12A (P-12A) and developed by GSC and CSULB, carried payloads that were designed and developed by students of CSULB, Santa Clara University, Saratoga High School and the University of Kentucky. Their mission was to collect data about the rocket's aerodynamic performance, the rocket's trajectory, and to record video for further study.
"It was an exciting experience and learning process for these students and their mentors,” said Professor Bob Twiggs of Stanford University. “The Saratoga High School students asked me to say ‘thanks’ to the WIRED program for this opportunity."
Recognizing the activity as an experience the students will remember, Dr. Eric Besnard, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at CSULB, commented that “this launch represented the culmination of weeks of close collaboration between industry mentors, students and faculty and as a result its lessons about systems integration are all the more valuable.”
According to John Garvey of GSC, “this launch represents another important step in our long-term goal of developing a dedicated nanosat launch vehicle that can put these kinds of student payloads into orbit. The P-12A rocket reached an altitude of 3,000 feet before returning to earth.” All payloads survived the launch and returned intact and the student investigators were intensely focused on retrieving their hardware and data.
“To ensure we retain our leadership in the global space economy, it is imperative that we step up our workforce training efforts to fill the coming gap that will be caused by retirements from the existing workforce,” concluded Mrs. Seastrand. “It is exciting to know that CSA was instrumental in providing this highly relevant opportunity for students.”
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Governed by a statewide board of directors, the California Space Authority (CSA) is a nonprofit corporation representing the commercial, civil, and national defense/homeland security interests of California's diverse space enterprise community in all four domains: industry, government, academia, and workforce.
