Five Grade 12 students from Central Peel Secondary School have won second place in an international competition by NASA.
The 5 students — Vyshna Krishnakumar, Vishvam Mazumdar, Kanav Arora, Rinay Shah and Vraj Patel — created a detailed, sustainable plan for settling on another planet, Mars was their planet of choice.
“It’s not about Mars exactly, it’s about a self-sustaining community in space, the future of humanity, where people are going to go after Earth,” one of the students, Vyshna Krishnakuma,, told CBC.
Congratulations to Central Peel Secondary School on placing second at the NASA Ames Space Settlement Contest!https://t.co/cQazQcEZEu pic.twitter.com/IjGfMw0jJy
— Peel School Board (@PeelSchools) March 29, 2017
A 138-page plan details exactly how they would create this sustainable life in space.
The settlement would be built in the shape of an ellipsoid, a 3D shape that resembles a flattened sphere. Pieces of the settlement would be flown into space in pieces and assembled to act as spaces for agriculture, business, entertainment and more.
They tackled the project with the desire in mind to build a civilization. Essential needs like food and energy were at the top of the list. Providing entertainment and fun was also an important part of their planning. Humans stuck in space need things to help pass the time, one such thing being a virtual zoo.
The competition was stiff, the Central Peel students were up against 1,500 other entries submitted by 6,000 students from across the globe. They were the only Canadian team to bring home a prize.
The students will head to St. Louis, Missouri in May to present their project at the International Space Development Conference.
