Elementary School Science Experiment Will Take Place In Outer Space
CHICAGO (CBS)-- A science experiment by some Chicago Public School students is making its way to the International Space Station.
WBBM Newsradio's Nancy Harty reports.
Skinner West Elementary Science Teacher Kori Milroy said her students' experiment of how yeast cells react to pheromones in space will start Thursday.
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"The astronaut will bend the outer tube, crack the glass tub and shake it to mix the two samples and then that activates the experiment," Milroy said.
Students won a school contest last spring and spent the summer working with a UIC biology professor to learn how to prepare and pack the experiment.
The experiment won't take long but the materials won't come back to earth until November. They will return on a Russian spacecraft.
"No matter how long it takes for them to get back to us from Kazakhstan, they're going to look the same as they looked in space, when the experiment's done," Milroy said.
The project was chosen out of 1100 experiments to go aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule and received private grant money to pay the $20,000 freight cost.
The Skinner West science class is one of 11 student groups nationally to have their experiment ideas chosen for inclusion in the mission.
