Astra Nova Students' Winning Experiment Takes To The Sky

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA — An experiment created by six students from Elon Musk's Astra Nova School will fly approximately 70,000 feet in the air to test if there is a possibility for life on another planet.

In 2020, scientists discovered Phosphine (PH3) gas in the atmosphere of Venus which sparked questions about if the gas was produced by anaerobic bacterial life like it is on Earth. This was the main inspiration for the Rancho Palos Verdes Student team's experiment, to improve the lack of data on PH3 in the stratosphere of Earth.

The easiest place to look for the gas is in the air, and the students aim to use their chance to help find out if there is a possibility that there is a sign of life on Venus. As one of the 60 student teams from around the nation who won NASA's TechRise Student Challenge, the students were awarded $1,500 to build out their experiment, a flight box in which to build it, technical support from Future Engineers and a spot on the high-altitude balloon flight.

"I'm looking forward to my students being able to build their proposed instrument and watch it develop," the students' teacher Trudi Hoogenboom said. "I'm also looking forward to them trying, failing, trying again, persevering, succeeding and learning from the whole process. These sorts of real world experiences are priceless."

The TechRise Student Challenge is in its second year and its purpose is to offer students hands-on experience with the payload build and flight test process, as well as the chance to contribute to NASA's mission of exploring space and studying the planet.

Students will test their experiments via a four-hour high-altitude balloon flight in either South Dakota or Arizona. This gives the students' experiment a unique opportunity to be in conditions that can't be replicated with ground-based tests.

"NASA’s missions of tomorrow are sparked by the accomplishments of the Artemis Generation today in classrooms across America,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “Through opportunities like the TechRise Student Challenge, young people are deepening their passion in science and technology, preparing to be the future innovators and pioneers who help humanity soar to new heights and unlock more secrets of the universe.”

Astra Nova, an online school connected to Musk's extremely exclusive SpaceX school Ad Astra, serves around 185 students across its programs and, according to Executive Director Josh Dahn, forgoes traditional subjects to provide students with a one-of-a-kind education.

Hoogenboom said it was an easy decision to propose the TechRise Challenge to her students and provide them an opportunity to take charge of their own education.

"Being able to design an experiment, collect scientific data and (hopefully) write a peer-reviewed paper is something that my students love to do," Hoogenboom said.