New ways to dig into science and math were introduced to Discovery Canyon Campus students last week as Air Force Academy personnel delivered satellite models.
A few students and teachers representing the different grades at the school attended a gathering Thursday when the delivery arrived at the elementary library.
“I thought they were really cool,” said fifth-grader Allison Hildreth. The shiny purple solar panels on one of the satellites were interesting, she said.
The academy donated the items to the K-12 school to encourage curiosity.
“We were cleaning up the lab,” said Air Force Col. Marty France, with the Department of Astronautics.
They could have placed the pieces in storage but donating them to a school where they could spur questions and lessons seemed a much better use, he said.
“We want to do anything we can to motivate kids to study math and science,” France said.
France said it is one of the first times such a donation has been made to a school. It’s common for Air Force Academy personnel to visit schools and bring things to show, but they don’t often leave things behind, he said.
Discovery Canyon elementary principal Christina Serola said the gift was an honor.
Two of the pieces are scale models: a Defense Satellite Communications System satellite and a Defense Support Program satellite.
One of the satellites is the real deal. The Explorer 20 satellite was the backup for one launched in 1964 to take measurements in the ionosphere, part of the upper atmosphere.
“In the early days it wasn’t uncommon to build two satellites,” France said.
The fourth item is a Mercury 7 capsule model that includes a detailed look inside the replica of the vehicle that John Glenn flew to become the first American to orbit Earth.
Speakers from the Air Force Academy had the students do math problems to figure out how large the pieces would be if they were true to size instead of scale models.
Fifth-grader Michael McLaughlin said he especially liked the folded-up solar panels on one of the models. He said he was surprised that satellites can remain in orbit “forever,” as explained by France.
Defense satellites aren’t limited to military use, France told the students. Satellites also can help when fighting wildfires because the equipment can “see” through smoke.
“I think it’s cool how they can track missiles with the telescope” on satellites, said eighth-grader Erin McGill.
The elementary, middle and high school levels at the combined campus will each get a satellite to display, Serola said. The lunar capsule will stay in the elementary wing.
“It’s pretty exciting,” she said.
That was evident among the teachers who attended the dedication ceremony Thursday.
The donation brings science into the school but also opens up possibilities for history and humanities lessons, said teacher Christa Lundberg, who is also the science and math coordinator at the school.
