Emily was selected as the
Future Engineers Design Challenge Winner for the Junior Category (K-12 years old) in early October 2015. The 3D print design challenge was to design a space container for zero gravity. She created a tea cage that would brew tea grown on the ISS. Here is the
announcement posted by ASME.
This is her statement for the project:
"Sometimes it gets boring in space. Astronauts need something to liven up
their meals. After looking at the categories for a space container I
decided to make a container for liquids. In space liquids form spheres
and stick to things they touch because surface tension is different in
zero gravity. While doing research I saw a video from space of some
string holding a sphere of water in place. I realized a cage could
definitely do it, too. I was reading about juices and tea. That got my
mind working. Tea is flavored by leaves and astronauts study plants in
space. Astronauts could plant tea leaves in space and occasionally they
could pick a couple leaves and make tea! You put the tea leaves in the
lower compartment of this design. The lid closes on hinges so the leaves
don’t float away. You use Velcro to keep the lid closed. Then you
squirt hot water into the cage. The water sphere would just stay in the
cage. The leaves flavor the water through the holes and then you drink
the tea!"
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| Emily being interviewed in a google hangout by NASA engineers, Made In Space engineer, and an astronaut. | | | |
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| test 3D print |
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| Emily's Tinkercad design work in progress. |
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| initial concept sketches |
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