Out and About
Binar X
St George's Anglican Grammar School
Space project with the X-factor
For the last 18 months, some of our students have taken part in Binar X – a co-curricular science extension run by Curtin University. It enables students to design and make a payload for a microsatellite and send it into orbit on a SpaceX rocket. There are only a handful of schools in Western Australia that were accepted for this, and St George's was one of them.
Over those 18 months, our students have been designing, testing, calculating, programming, and making a small payload that will be sent to space in a micro satellite with other schools’ payloads.
St George's students decided to make a payload to test and measure how disturbances in space – like the atmosphere, magnetic field and spacetime curvature – can affect the trajectory, velocity and stability of microsatellites in orbit. Needless to say, the students went with an advanced project. If the payload can obtain data in space, it will add to the body of information on satellite trajectory so that we and Curtin Uni can use it to run tests and possibly even write a scientific paper (fingers crossed!).
Students have been presenting to Curtin Uni professors and lecturers, as well as other schools, on their development throughout the 18 months. On the last day of Term 2, students handed over their completed payload to the uni and presented their work to other schools. The payload will now be tested by Curtin, in a shake and vacuum test to make sure the instruments and coding all work.
If all goes to plan, it will be launched in a SpaceX rocket beginning of next year. This was a huge milestone for them, and they all did an exceptional job getting this far, we can be very proud of them. We didn't stay the whole day last term as we got back for the Lincoln Charity Day, but it made the local news and some newspapers and space sites.
The students below have been involved. If you see them, please congratulate them.
- Zara Jones
- Adam Lazarevska
- Cooper Grant
- Finn Turner
- Finn Craig-Harding
- Molly Green
- Charlie Hewitt
- Leo Busch
- Seb Kodituwakku
- Harry Stowe
- Jacob White
- Liam Thompsom
- Isabella Kodituwakku
- Ruth Duuring
Mr Thomas Dempers
Science Teacher