A group of Sweet Home students won’t make it to space on their upcoming trip, but they will get about as close as they possibly can when they leave this week for Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The group includes 18 students, mostly from Oak Heights with one from Holley, one from the junior high, two from Mt. Angel and two from Portland.
Oak Heights fifth-grade teacher Laurie Carlson is leading the “Earth Shuttle” group on the annual trip. Twelve other adults will join the trip.
“Mostly the trip is science and technology,” Carlson said. The Earth Shuttle group will spend two days at Kennedy Space Center.
To prepare for the trip, the students have met after school for several weeks to talk about the space program. Thursday, they talked about astronaut Don Petit of Silverton.
Petit is on the International Space Station.
He was due to return in March, Carlson said. Because of the Columbia disaster, no shuttles are available to bring him back. Plans are to bring him back on a Russian Soyuz on May 3, the day the Earth Shuttle group goes to Kennedy Space Center.
“That’s going to be the hot news out there,” Carlson said. “We’ll get this first hand.”
On a disappointing note, this will be the first trip in seven years when a shuttle will not be visible on a launch pad at Kennedy, Carlson said.
The students are excited to hear all about the space program.
“I’m going to bring back, probably, some stuff about what it’s like in space,” David Thornbrough of Oak Heights said.
Eric Munts is looking forward to hearing what astronauts do in space and on the International Space Station.
The students will visit a museum dedicated to the space station, Carlson said. The amazing thing about the station is the amount of knowledge it provides doubles yearly.
“I’m always amazed by how much work has been done,” Carlson said.
Abbie Rice wants to find out about rocket technology and about training for survival in space in emergencies.
“Well go through an area, if there’s an emergency, we’ll actually get to see how they can get out of the shuttle in literally seconds and save themselves,” Carlson said.
Christian Whitfield wants to find out what college classes he will need to take to be an astronaut or work for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Asked who wants to work for NASA, several hands around the room shot up, including Carlson’s.
“I’m not sure I would be one of those people in one of those space vehicles … but I’d love to work for NASA,” Carlson said.
The trip will provide a look at much more than the space program. Kennedy Space Center is located on a national wildlife refuge, Carlson said. The students will get a look at how the high-tech program coexists with wildlife, including the endangered manatee. They will get a look at a two-ton eagle’s nest, with branches in some cases as thick as her arm.
The Earth Shuttle group leaves on May 3 and returns on May 9. Other activities will include Disneyworld, Epcot Center, Magic Kingdom and Universal Studios.
Sweet Home students on the trip include McKenna Burnett, Logan Clark, Robert Claunch, Ali Connell, Kendra Connell, Kylee Eder, Eric Munts, Danyelle Petermen, Abbie Rice, Caid Sanders, Jessica Snow, Whitney Spenst, Jamie Steinbacher, David Thornbrough, Nicolle Traeger, Christian Whitfield and Brianna Wirth.