Soda Can Satellites Prepare to Take Flight

CanSat is a European Space competition which familiarizes students with technologies similar to those used by a satellite. Teams of 4-6 members must envision a space mission and design and construct a soda-can sized educational satellite. The satellite will then be launched from an altitude of 1,000m, measure air temperature and air pressure to report to the ground station, land with the help of a parachute, and execute a secondary mission chosen by the team.

Two teams of Anatolia students are working hard for the first phase of competition in October: one comprised of both gymnasium and lykeion students, and the “Aurora 6”, an all-girls lykeion team. Aurora 6 has chosen a secondary mission of measuring life-sustaining elements – such as temperature, pressure, sunlight, water activity, and CO2 – as the satellite lands, thereby determining if a specific planet is appropriate for the presence of life. We wish both teams and their advisors, Mr. Bandis and Ms. Koliakou, the best of luck as they work hard to prepare their satellites for flight this fall!