The first stunning images have been released from the Project Helios mission to near space which ‘blasted off’ from St Andrew’s Academy in Paisley in June.
The project saw a helium-filled, weather balloon take off from the school carrying a payload which included; cameras, scientific experiments, GPS tracking devices and a cactus called Scott.
The balloon reached an altitude of 100,000ft, encountered temperatures of -62oC and travelled over 150 miles.
The balloon beat odds of over 200/1 to land safely on the Isle of Man, rather than ditching in the Irish Sea, after it missed its expected landfall in Dumfriesshire.
Former S6 pupil and mission controller. Lewis Campbell said, “Obviously this wasn’t quite the same scale as the NASA mission to Pluto but it was a huge achievement to reach space on our first attempt. I am absolutely thrilled to see a successful conclusion to the project, especially the immensely lucky landing on the Isle of Man.
“Project Helios’ Maiden flight was the result of months of hard work by all the Helios students at St. Andrew’s Academy. It was absolutely fantastic to see their efforts succeed in making St Andrew’s Academy, the first Scottish High School to go to space! We had fantastic support from the Science Department and the Head Teacher, Kevin Henry.
“The experiment also brought back important information. The fact that the cactus had changed due to the rapid freezing is a great indication of not only the way we may have to freeze-store plants when travelling to and from space but the effects of rapid freezing on plants on Earth too. This could alter the way we store plants, and more importantly food, so that it lasts longer while still being edible.”
Councillor Jacqueline Henry, Convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Education and Children’s Policy Board, said, “This is cutting-edge science done at secondary school level. Project Helios and activities which promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths, STEM subjects, pave the way for young people to get involved in groundbreaking discoveries, typically only achieved by well known scientists and researchers. It’s a massive boost for STEM Subjects, and it’s a promising start for Project Helios and space activities like it.”
Renfrewshire Council thanked the Steam Packet Ferry Company and John and Diane Marchment for retrieving the Project Helios payload capsule from the Isle of Man and returning it to St Andrew’s Academy. The council would also like to thank Chris Hillcox for the technical support and equipment he provided.