Talking to the Moon: Students on East Campus are sending lunar satellites into space with NASA!
By UWCSEA Communications Team
5 June 2024
It’s not every day we see ‘UWCSEA’ and ‘NASA’ in the same sentence! While reading the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) newsletter, Grade 8 student, Aarav, came across something that caught his eye—GLEE. He jumped at the chance to bring the Great Lunar Expedition for Everyone (GLEE) to UWCSEA because it offered a chance to be part of something truly innovative and groundbreaking. GLEE is a worldwide programme for High School and College students, in partnership with NASA’s Artemis mission, which involves students coding and designing a lunar satellite that will later be sent straight to the Moon.
Not wanting to miss out on such a fantastic opportunity for our High School students to participate, Aarav set his plans in motion with the guidance of Matthew Weaver, Head of Innovation at East Campus. He garnered sign-ups from 30 students, each bringing diverse skills to the table, enough to form six teams.
Taking on the role of GLEE Student Leader, the teams worked on their project for two years, building on their ideas from the ground up. Collaborating with NASA, they worked on designing a lunar satellite intended for the Moon—one that was capable of collecting scientific data from the lunar surface.
“Whether in the classroom or space, GLEE has provided all of us with an opportunity to take on meaningful real-world challenges beyond our usual standardised assessments. We had to learn how to code, wire, and successfully design lunar satellites to the standards set by NASA for GLEE. As the lunar satellites are composed of unique boards, the teams needed to know how to use the interface and how to access all the scientific instruments that were provided by NASA.” Aarav, Grade 8, East Campus
The teams have now successfully sent the equipment back to NASA with their finished codes and designs. Their lunar satellites will be sent to the Moon for scientific research and experimentation—meaning a piece of UWCSEA will be sent to the Moon!
Nurturing young innovators
Our Innovation@EAST programme has played host to innovative projects led by students, such as GLEE. The programme’s interdisciplinary mindset involves students tackling problems and crafting solutions aimed at making a social impact both locally and globally.
Aarav is an avid innovator under this programme and credits Matthew Weaver and the College for supporting his GLEE initiative adding that “it is incredibly exciting to network with like-minded people, learn about new advancements, and be a part of a culture that supports achievement and innovation”.
What’s next? Space of course!
The GLEE lunar satellites are timed to coincide with NASA’s Artemis mission, a programme aimed at re-establishing human presence on the Moon for the first time since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. Expected to be sent to the Moon in 2025 or 2026, the GLEE lunar satellites may just pave the way for future missions to Mars!
“Our innovation strategy here at UWCSEA is to attract exceptional teams, but we also build them and in this case we were able to do this through immersive exploration whilst connecting the Middle and High School students.”
– Matthew Weaver, Head of Innovation, East Campus