Page 215 - International Space Station Benefits for Humanity, 3rd edition.

welding, basic architecture, critical-thinking and In a culmination of skills learned as part of the HUNCH
problem-solving skills. NASA provides materials, Program, two students from Cypress Woods High
equipment, mentoring and inspection oversight School in Texas—Robert Lipham and Alie Derkowski—
during the fabrication of these items. While students were selected to attend the Technology Student
are building items for NASA, they are also building Association National Competition in Orlando, Florida,
their self-confidence and interest as researchers. to present the skills they acquired while building
To date, HUNCH participants have produced single- Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) trainers for
stowage lockers, cargo bags, educational videos NASA. HUNCH paired with the ISS U.S. National
and experiments proposed to fly on the space station. Laboratory to provide funding for the students to
Some standout projects include the design and showcase their engineering education endeavors.
fabrication of a disposable, collapsible glovebox; Design updates made by Lipham and Derkowski saved
an organizer for crew quarters on the space station; NASA money by streamlining the MSG trainers, which
and a European Physiology Modules Rack trainer, are mock-ups of space hardware for crew mission
which provides facilities for human physiology research. preparation. When the idea to create these items
Students produced the cargo bags called Sewn Flight came to HUNCH, the cost estimate was $1 million for
Articles (or Softgoods) as part of a HUNCH Program. four MSG high-fidelity trainers. HUNCH provided NASA
These Sewn Flight Articles uses fabric and other soft with five MSG trainers for less than $250,000.
materials to create goods requested by NASA centers Every year, recognition ceremonies are held for all
and the space station crew. Since its beginning, students and teachers who participate in the HUNCH
HUNCH had produced hundreds of items for NASA. Program. The number of participants continues to grow
The HUNCH culinary competition involves students annually, as do the quality, quantity and diversity of
from more than 30 high schools. These students products that the students fabricate. Although the
create new dishes, taking into account food processing recognition ceremonies recognize student work, they
procedures and nutritional requirements and standards also acknowledge the educational benefits of NASA
of the JSC Food Lab. Local taste competitions teaming up with students. This is often measured by
determine the finalists who will compete at JSC, with the changes in the students’ attitudes toward their
the winning entree processed by the Food Lab and own self-assurance and desire to enter STEM careers.
sent up to the space station for the astronauts to enjoy. HUNCH is an innovative solution for inspiring the next
generation of researchers and space explorers while
providing money savings and resource efficiencies for
NASA. Schools can get involved through the online
application on the HUNCH website (http://www.
nasahunch.com/).

Genes in Space-3 Successfully Identifies
Unknown Microbes in Space
Being able to identify microbes in real time aboard
the ISS without having to send the microbes back
to Earth for identification first would be revolutionary
for the world of microbiology and space exploration.
The Genes in Space-3 team turned that possibility
into a reality this year when it completed the first-ever
sample-to-sequence process entirely aboard the
Students from Cypress Ranch High School, space station.
Cypress, Texas, present mock-up hardware The ability to identify microbes in space could aid in
to staff at JSC. This hardware was built diagnosing and treating astronaut ailments in real time,
for NASA training programs as part of the as well as assist in identifying DNA-based life on other
HUNCH Program. planets. It could also benefit other experiments aboard
Image credit: NASA the space station. Identifying microbes involves isolating
the DNA of samples, and then amplifying—or making

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