by Shelby Deibler ’20, Podcast Producer
Editor’s Note: The author of this story attended the conference.
Three Upper School students traveled to Los Angeles, California for the five day Satellite and Education Conference on July 17-21. The conference, which is called MYSPACE (Multinational Youth Studying Practical Applications of Climate Events), is hosted by the Satellite Educators Association and held at California State University Los Angeles.
Jess Cerasaro ‘20, Shelby Deibler ‘20, and Henry Powell ‘20 represented MFS during the week long study of this year’s topic: urban heat islands. The group’s research began during the second and third quarters as a SEE project, but with the guidance of Mr. Newman and Mr. Trunkwalter, their project was turned into a serious, local study on how athletic turf fields contribute to the urban heat island effect.
As Jess Cerasaro ‘20 explains, “MYSPACE was such a great experience. It was so cool to see our SEE project research turned into an actual study on Urban Heat Islands. I really liked the way we were able to collaborate with students from across the globe. My favorite part was definitely touring the Jet Propulsion Lab and sightseeing in LA!”
The conference not only allowed the students to meet with kids from around the world researching the same topic, but gave them a chance to collaborate with them to create a larger, unified project at the end of the week. Advisor John Trunkwalter said that “MFS students’ participation in the 2018 MYSPACE program consisted of a long week of hard work, which included honing their collaboration, communication, and leadership skills. They also managed to fit in some down time with a guided tour of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).”
This tour provided the unique opportunity to engage with scientists and engineers directly involved in research missions to Mars, Jupiter, Europa, Pluto, and more. Visiting places like the JPL and Cal State with students from across the globe made this trip a unique experience for the MFS team.
This article originally appeared in a September 7, 2018 print edition.
