A Delaware Hayes High School student recently landed back home after graduating from Space Camp.
Rachel White, an incoming senior at Hayes, said the weeklong trip to Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama, was very exciting since she plans to become an aerospace engineer.
“Space Camp seemed like an incredible opportunity to learn about possible career paths in the field because of the amazing activities they have available for campers,” White said.
During Space Camp, students spent the week training with a team that flew a simulated space mission to the International Space Station (ISS), the Moon or Mars.
Margie Phillips, the communications productions manager at Space Camp, said White and her crew participated in experiments and successfully completed an extra-vehicular activity (EVA), or spacewalk, and White and crew returned to Earth in time to graduate with honors.
White said the experience was “absolutely incredible.”
“Space Camp provided so many opportunities for learning and experiencing things that I never thought I would,” she said. “We were able to try multiple simulators, including pilot simulators, zero gravity simulators, and even a multi-axis machine which simulates a space tumble. We also had a chance to scuba dive, we completed multiple engineering challenges, and we learned throughout many presentations the history of global space travel.”
White said campers also worked through mock missions, such as launching a shuttle in order to fix a satellite.
“We were all designated a role, whether it be mission control or an astronaut, which gave all of us a chance to experience what those positions are like as a job,” White said. “I learned so much throughout the week.”
White added the missions and a glimpse into the reality of the job she was given were her favorite parts of Space Camp.
“They gave me a clear vision of what a career in aerospace would look like,” White said. “Which is exactly what I wanted to gain from Space Camp. In addition, the people I met, who were also all incredible, made the missions extremely fun through dramatic acting and lots of laughs.”
White said she hopes to become an aerospace engineer, and the trip has only fueled her determination.
“All of the knowledge I gained at Space Camp will translate directly over to my college career and my actual career,” she said. “It helped me decide exactly what I want to focus my degree on, and therefore, my career. In addition, it’s pretty fun to know some crazy space facts to use as party tricks!”
