Three Oaks Middle School Visits Kennedy Space Center!

On April 23 at 4:45 AM the Three Oaks Middle School class of Thomas Provenzano boarded the Greyhound bus for the four-hour trip to Kennedy Space Center (KSC). Thomas Provenzano, his students, and Joe Delai are a team in the Virtual Science Mentor Program at KSC. Delai is also a member of the Space Team Online. After many months of planning and preparation Provenzano and Delai were about to give their students a real treat -- an all- day tour of Kennedy Space Center. The Greyhound bus arrived at building 2001 right on schedule. Delai met with the students and gave them a briefing on the day's schedule of events.

After the briefing, it was time to get back on the bus and begin the tour. The first stop would be the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). On the way out to the VAB Delai pointed out the eagle's nest which was right off state road 3. Delai said that this particular nest weighed approximately one ton and had an average diameter of 12 feet. Kennedy Space Center is located on the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge where technology and nature have learned to coexist with each other. To learn more about wildlife at KSC please visit Alligators and Rocket Ships at http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/visit/kscovrv.htm.

As we approached the VAB, many of the students made comments on the size of this amazing structure. The VAB stands 525 feet tall and is equal in volume to three Empire State Buildings! Once inside, the students were treated to a discussion of the orbiter engines that were being refurbished as well as the work being done on the external tank and solid rocket boosters. Delai pointed out that the steel structure of the VAB was assembled using bolts and nuts instead of rivets. This allows the building to move in adverse weather. You can learn more about the VAB operations at http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/facilities/vab.html. The next stop on the list was the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF). Immediately after landing, the orbiter is towed to the OPF located west of the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The orbiter then undergoes safing procedures in the OPF which includes removing residual fuels and explosive ordnance items. The orbiter is then deconfigured from the previous mission and configured for the next.

After processing through security we were all directed to bay-1 of the OPF. What was so special about this was that the orbiter Endeavor was in the bay and being worked on. The students were split into groups and we walked around Endeavor and observed some of the work being done. Many of the Thermal Protection Tiles (TPS) were being replaced from Endeavor's last mission and the students were given a demonstration of some of these tiles. The students were allowed to hold the tiles using protective gloves. This picture shows Endeavor's front landing gear where many of the tiles were being replaced.

The next stop was out to launch pad 39B. Pad 39B was the pad used to launch Columbia for the current STS-90 Neurolab mission. Our trip out to 39B paralleled the crawler way path that is used to transport the shuttle from the VAB to pads 39A or B. What is really amazing about this is that the path looks like two separate roads. In reality, each road is 40 feet wide and they are separated by a 50-foot median. Each road is used for the left and right tracks of the crawler. Upon arrival at 39B, we drove around the perimeter of the pad as Joe gave a briefing of the pad and some of its peculiarities. Learn more about launch pads 39 A and B at http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/facilities/lc39a.html.

The next stop was the cafeteria at the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF). Delai was in his home territory now. Just before lunch Joe announced that we would receive a special guest visitor later that afternoon. The students immediately asked if it would be one of the "aliens from Hangar L." Joe played with the suggestion and responded that they would have to wait and see. After lunch the students gathered outside for a group picture. They had "re-fueled" in the cafeteria and were now ready to go.

The next stop was the Flight Crew Equipment room. Here the students were given demonstrations on how equipment is prepared for space flight. Many of the items, such as tools, had Velcro and retention chords attached to them so that they would not float away from the astronauts in the microgravity environment. Personal items for each crew member are identified by little colored dots. These dots represent which crew member owns that particular item. An example of a chocolate pudding cup was held up. "See the red dot? This means this is the orbiter commander's pudding. Don't eat the commander's pudding," brought laughter from the crowd. The students were given examples of the dehydrated foods that the astronauts take into space. They were quite surprised to find out that shrimp cocktail was one of the favorites. A question and answer session then followed for the next 30 minutes. The students were then encouraged to try on different items, such as gloves and helmets, and be strapped into an orbiter seat for a picture.

Directly across the hall the students were shown how items are packed into foam in preparation for a space flight. This packing process is the only method of its type in the entire world. Items to be packaged are drawn using a CAD/CAM program and then a robotic cutting tool cuts the exact shape of that object. A demonstration of this process had been set up prior to the students' arrival and the students were able to observe their names being cut out of foam blocks. As a memento of their visit, a block of foam was cut bearing the name "Three Oaks Middle School - KSC." This was presented to Provenzano at the end of the tour.

Next, we were off to the high-bay area of the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF). Joe showed the class many of the actual components of the International Space Station (ISS) and entertained their questions about the ISS. Joe was particularly proud of his direct involvement of the Primary Mating Adapter (PMA-3) and the pallets that he works on with the Space Station Hardware Integration Office (SSHIO). Learn more about the ISS components at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/journals/delai/tour02-25.html. Next, we all moved to a conference room on the third floor of the SSPF. There, the students were led in a discussion about the future project they will be submitting to be flown in space. That's right! The class has been preparing a project that they hope will fly on one of the future space missions and will be tested by the next teacher in space. They discussed the documentation, goals, and itinerary that will lead up to this event.

After this discussion, the class was expecting their guest visitor. Was the visitor an alien? I explained to them that they had been talking to an alien for almost the entire day - Joe Delai. The class chuckled at that suggestion. The announcement was made that our guest visitor has arrived. The students perked up in their seats as astronaut Keven Kregel came into the room. For the next hour and a half, Kregel and the students talked about life in space and many of his experiences. Astronaut Kregel has logged 41 days, 12 hours, 42 minutes and 5 seconds in space. He was the pilot on STS-70 (July 13-22, 1995) and STS-78 (June 20-July 7, 1996), and was the spacecraft commander on STS-87 (November 19 to December 5, 1997). Read Keven Kregel's biography at http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/kregel.html. It was obvious that this was no alien. This was a special human being that has a love of what this life has offered him and was eager to share his experiences with all of us. The students asked about the menu of space food, launch, landing, daily activities, and life in microgravity. Kregel accounted for the most beautiful sight that he has seen in his life, Earth from space! The time he took to spend with the students left a huge impression upon them and all of us. In fact, I believe I saw a few future astronauts in the crowd!

The day had been long and full of adventure for the Three Oaks Middle School class. Unfortunately, it was now time to go home. We returned to building 2001 and said our good-byes, knowing that we had all shared a great experience together.