CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Aug. 4, 2017 - PRLog -- For the first time in more than a decade, Brazil will once again send an experiment to the International Space Station to be conducted by an astronaut. The initiative is the Garatéa Mission, and it is sponsored by the same space consortium that is planning the first Brazilian lunar mission, with launch scheduled for 2021.
Named Garatéa-ISS, the project will be part of the 12th edition of the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP), an annual initiative of the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE) and NanoRacks in conjunction with NASA. The goal of the program is to engage the student community in educational experiments in space.
"This is the first time that a community outside of North America has been approved by the program and we are very excited about the opportunity," says Lucas Fonseca, director of the initiative in Brazil.
The opportunity was facilitated by the Brazil-Florida Chamber of Commerce, which helped in the search for an impact project that would align Brazilian and American interests. The intersection was found through the KSC International Academy (KSCIA).
"I think the greatest importance of such a collaboration is the opportunity to inspire the future generation that will eventually act in some area of the space program," says Jefferson Michaelis, president of the Brazil-Florida Chamber of Commerce. "For Brazil, a chance to revive the alliance with the ISS and, at the same time, the opportunity for young Brazilians and educators to join the space area. For the US, an opportunity to get to know the talented, creative and innovative Brazilian youth. This can help create new opportunities between the two nations. "
The Brazilian experiment should go to the space station in 2018 and will have the participation of 450 students from the 7th grade (average age: 13) from both public and private schools. Brazilian students have not hd an opportunity like this since 2006, when the Centenary Mission took Marcos Pontes, the first Brazilian astronaut, to the International Space Station.
COLLABORATION
The objective of the project is to broaden the interest of cooperation between Brazilian American students and educators in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)
About BFCC
The Brazil-Florida Chamber of Commerce, BFCC, is a not-for-profit organization. BFCC has emerged as one of the most dynamic bilateral business catalysts in the nation in recent years.
Visit: http://www.BrazilFlorida.org for more details
Contact
Cibele Santiago
***@brazilflorida.org
Photos: (Click photo to enlarge)
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