As one of the top ten finalists in Australia, a group of determined Corinda State High School students competed in the Australian Space Design Competition finals at the University of Queensland (UQ) in January.
The students, alongside Head of Department Richard Jack, responded to a Request for Tender (RFT) identical to one which would be received in industry, and designed a fully functional space settlement; which took into consideration structure, operations, automation, human factors, and logistics.
Students had 28 hours to complete this task of settling just over 300 people on the moon where mining explorations could take place. The students were teamed up with peers from Padua College (Brisbane) and Magdelene Catholic College (Sydney) to form a “company", keeping in mind not only the STEM aspects involved, but also teamwork, leadership, marketing and economic factors as well.
Students enjoyed meeting and working alongside industry professionals whilst being provided with an industry simulated environment to compete in. Although they did not win the competition, the team did come away with a great experience, as well being awarded the Peter O'Keeffe Leadership Award, which was received by 2023 School Captain Sienna Head. This accolade is presented to participants from each company who create an inclusive environment, demonstrate humility and service to others, and work hard for the team while embodying the spirit of the competition.
Congratulations to Sarthak, Sienna, Tyson, Ruth, Lucas, James, Jaymi, Edward, and Sharvvash for creating an RFT which was described as “highly innovative and adaptive", with ideas that could be used in possible missions!