BinarX project: 100 Perth students have been given a rare chance to be part of the global space industry

Perth students are working with Curtin University’s Space Science and Technology Centre to launch WA’s first student project into space. The BinarX project, run by dedicated teachers and Curtin University staff, is giving about 100 students a rare chance to be part of the global space industry. Lead schools, John Curtin College of the Arts in Fremantle, and Joseph Banks College in Banksia Grove, have drawn on the expertise of staff and students at Halls Head College, Peter Carnley Anglican Community School in Wellard, and Applecross Senior High School to help design and build a type of “binar” (Noongar word for “fireball”) spacecraft containing a satellite. The satellite, called a CubeSat, is a 10cm cube about twice the size of a Rubik’s Cube that will orbit solo, 400km above the Earth’s surface. Inside the CubeSat, a small machine contains a circuit board and tiny camera. The machine will gather data for an experiment called a payload*, so students can map damage to Earth’s ozone layer*. John Curtin College of the Arts Director of Technologies, Tim Rowberry, said early next year the student’s CubeSat will hitch a ride to space on board a regular supply mission to the International Space Station*. Once there, an astronaut will load the satellite into an airlock and blast it into space, a bit like a nerf gun*, he explained. “A CubeSat costs thousands of dollars and many man-hours to build,” Mr Rowberry said. “Hopefully, the CubeSat will spend one to two years in space before burning up.” Mr Rowberry said the project has been a massive collaborative effort. “It’s a powerful demonstration of the incredible achievements schools can make when they pool their resources, proving you don’t necessarily need special buildings and a huge budget,” he said. Working out how to connect the CubeSat with the ground, and how to store and release data was a big part of the challenge. John Curtin College of the Arts student Ben Hopper, 15, said getting access to ground stations* at NASA, other universities and space organizations around the world that are not using their ground station continuously, will be really important. “That way, we can bring down more data in real time,” Ben said. “We will also need to write our own programs to read the data.” Fitting all the necessary bits for the experiment inside such a small space was tricky. Fellow student Louis Bourgault Du Coudray, 13, confirmed the space inside the cube is so small, limited data can be stored and sent back, so the data will need to be compressed*. “It would be great if we can overlay the data with a program like Google maps to share with others,” Louis said. Good collaboration has been key, with students attending workshops at the Curtin University space centre and meeting regularly. For example, Louis noted one of the other schools had a similar idea to monitor ozone levels but together they were able to improve upon it. John Curtin student Ollie Mueller, 14, agreed students and staff have been involved in the project in many different ways, from welding to soldering (joining metal parts together), programming, coding, laser cutting, building prototypes, media and graphic design, to name just a few. Before any of that took place, the students did a huge amount of research. John Curtin student Hope, 15, said exploring what others had done before was critical. “It’s been amazing to learn some of the interesting skills and expertise our teachers have,” she said. She agreed tackling real work challenges has inspired many of the students to also pursue futures in maths, cybersecurity and science communication. Glossary * Payload: In space terms this refers to elements of a spacecraft that produce mission data and then relay that data back to Earth. (esa.int) * Ozone layer: The ozone layer is a thin part of Earth’s atmosphere that absorbs almost all of the sun’s harmful ultraviolet light. (education.nationalgeographic.org) * International Space Station: The International Space Station (ISS) is a spacecraft in Earth orbit that is used as a base for scientific research. The ISS is continuously occupied by astronauts as it orbits Earth. (kids.britannica.com) * Nerf gun: A toy that uses air pressure to fire foam projectiles. (thetoyzone.com) *Ground stations: Places on Earth that send data to and receive data from satellites. (solc.gsfc.nasa.gov) *Data will need to be compressed: a set of steps for packing data into a smaller space, while allowing for the original data to be seen again. (kids.kiddle.co) * Prototype: The first design of something from which other forms are copied or developed. (oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com) * Cybersecurity: Protecting a computer or computer system (as on the Internet) against unauthorized access or attack (merriam-webster.com)