OSU College of Education Participates in Producing Solar Cell Hardware for NASA

Dan Hern, Masters Student in Aviation and Space Education; Aaron Bookout, Student in Mechanical Engineering Technology; Steve Marks, Professor in Aviation Education; and Warren Lewis, Assistant Professor in Engineering Technology, produced solar cell hardware that will fly on-board NASA’s Space Shuttle Mission STS-115. Astronaut Chris Ferguson (STS-115 Pilot) participated in the design of the solar cell hardware and has agreed to fly the hardware onboard the shuttle when it is expected to launch this August from the Kennedy Space Center. 

During the fall semester, NASA Explorer School students across the United States will participate in education activities using solar cell hardware similar to the hardware that Astronaut Chris Ferguson will demonstrate on-orbit. . The solar cell panels and surrounding activities will be used to help students:

• Discover a basic understanding of electricity and power
• Discover variables that affect the operation of solar panels
• Learn about the power requirements of the International Space Station and how solar arrays supply the necessary power
• Discover power requirements of their own homes and how solar power could supply that power.

The project is a collaborative effort between Oklahoma State University college of Engineering, Architecture, and Technology; the OSU Teaching From Space Office located in the Astronaut Office at the NASA Johnson Space Center, and Lockheed Martin Corporation. 

Dr. Warren Lewis, Dan Hern, Aaron Bookout, and Dr. Steve Marks.

Dan Hern, OSU Masters Student in Aviation and Space Education, works on solar cell hardware that will fly aboard STS-115.

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Last Updated Tuesday, August 22, 2006 8:05 AM