Discovery link unites city with exploration of the stars
Primary school pupils from Tayside were joined by some very special visitors as they reached for the stars on a historic and emotional day for space exploration.
Matthew Ahrens, Mark Livingstone and Gregor McIntosh launch their bottle rocket.
- By Jonathan Watson
- Published in the Courier : 09.07.11
- Published online : 09.07.11 @ 01.15pm
Two astronauts from the retired shuttle Discovery were at Abertay University to meet youngsters on the day on which the very last NASA shuttle flight was scheduled to blast off.
Pilot Eric Boe and mission specialist Michael Barratt joined children taking part in the Space School programme to preside over a bottle rocket launch at the university.
Using water and compressed air, youngsters launched their own rockets as part of a project organised by Dundee City Council, Perth and Kinross Council and Abertay University.
While the shuttle Atlantis waited on its launch pad at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, Mr Boe, a colonel in the US Air Force, admitted he had mixed feelings about the craft's retirement.
"It's a bittersweet feeling," he said. "The shuttle has had its time, but it has been an amazing thing.
"The history of exploration will continue even though the era of the shuttle is over and we know that new ships are coming.
"You have the Discovery here in Dundee and that can get people inspired and we have our Discovery which will go to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington and hopefully that will excite future generations as well.
"I'm sure some of our future craft will also be named Discovery and hopefully carry on a historic name that will inspire even more people."
Mr Boe and Mr Barratt spoke with youngsters who had taken part in the Space School project, a week of activities highlighting the practical uses of science.
Importance
Mr Boe, who has clocked up more than 28 days in space, emphasised the importance of such initiatives.
"I remember doing things like this when I was a kid, and this is what got me interested in science and maths," he added. "I always wanted to be a pilot and then, if the opportunity presented itself, an astronaut."
The astronauts have spent a week in Scotland and toured Dundee's own Discovery, the ship that gifted its name to their spacecraft, earlier in the day.
Lord Provost John Letford showed the group around the famous ship, which was built in Dundee to withstand the extreme conditions of the Antarctic.
He said, "The city of Dundee enjoys close links with NASA and our ties have been strengthened through our mutual interest in RRS Discovery and admiration for Captain Scott and his crew.
"I am very proud to be with these modern explorers as they see for themselves the ship that helped shape a greater understanding of our world.
"This is a memorable day for Dundee as we invite the astronauts to share in our history and see how we are using it to inspire our future."
The astronauts also shared their experiences with youngsters at a free talk at Abertay University before watching the bottle rocket launches.
The Atlantis shuttle launched yesterday afternoon for a 12-day trip to the International Space Station.
In Perth and Kinross, the programme for the 42 P6 pupils involved was organised by council education staff and Perth College UHI.
Children took part in four sessions covering the chemistry of space, the atmosphere on Mars, space travel-including trying out flight simulator software at Scone aerodrome-sustaining life on Mars, its environment and using machinery on the "red planet."
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