Kid scientists from East Harlem launch gummy bears into space, capture the journey with GoPro
NEW YORK -- Children from East Harlem are learning about science in a unique way. They sent a balloon into the atmosphere and captured the incredible trip on video.
It's a massive feat of engineering, and its designers were young scientists from the Taft Houses. They built a high-altitude balloon to launch into space -- an astronomical task!
"Sometimes, it's the things that you least expect that are the most impactful," said Richard Habersham, founder & president of Solutions Now.
Haberhsam started Solutions Now in 2020, during the rise of the pandemic, to expose young, underserved NYCHA children to STEM and outdoor experimental programs. Solutions Now embarked on the ambitious project in collaboration with the young minds from Taft Houses, its resident association and leaders from City College.
"The mission of Solutions Now is to figure out how do we bring a community together with all the talent that we have," said Habersham.
It's that sense of community that helped land a partnership with balloon hobbyist John Garesche, who spearheaded the high-altitude experiment.
"It's latex. It's similar to your party balloons, except a whole lot bigger," said Garesche. "So, when it's on the ground and we fill it up, it gets to about 9 feet in diameter, and as it goes up, there's less and less air pressure pushing in and eventually gets to about 40 feet in diameter."
In a fun twist, the children decided to attach ordinary items, like gummy bears and marshmallows, to a platform on the balloon to find out how altitude impacts everyday objects.
At least three weeks of planning went into the experiment before the small group of kids traveled by bus to Somers, New York in Westchester County to test it out.
Garesche shared GoPro footage of the balloon's trip nearly 95,000 feet into the atmosphere.
"It did land in someone's backyard in Danbury, Connecticut," said Garesche. "They walked up to his house, knocked on the door and told him who I was and what we were doing."
Six-year-old Kayden Grant was mesmerized.
"It was so cool," he said.
Those simple moments, Habersham said, make a world of a difference in these kids' lives.