The final launch of NASA’s shuttle Atlantis has, for a time at least, jolted many into the realization that the United States is at risk of losing its dominance in space. Or at least, at risk of losing its ability to inspire others by achieving the big things that we’re capable of in space. As Clay Dillow put it in a recent Popular Science article, “this country needs something that restores our faith in American ingenuity.”
Last year, I set out with a few members of my hackerspace, Workshop 88, to do just that with an event called Hackerspaces in Space (HSIS). Originally thought of as an event just for hackerspaces, HSIS quickly turned into an event that took on any organization with the ingenuity and drive to build a near-space weather balloon, send it into space, and take pictures of our Earth. The event received a fair amount of attention — over 40 organizations signed up to participate — and later on, several of those groups completed the competition with amazing results.
This year, we’ve decided to take HSIS up a notch.
As individuals, I believe we have a responsibility to inspire people who would otherwise not have known what they were capable of achieving. Children in particular are an important group of people who should be encouraged to believe that they can achieve great things. I believe space is one of those great things.
That’s what this year’s Hackerspaces in Space is about. I’m happy to announce that Hackerspaces in Space will be raising money on Kickstarter, in conjunction with our core competition, to provide — completely free of charge — near-space weather balloon kits to schools around the country. All schematics from near-space teams will be open-sourced, with the first place team’s schematic being used as a blueprint for the kits provided to the schools.
What an amazing opportunity we have to give something great to students around our country!
To me, this is what science is about. It’s about making the lives of others better; it’s about showing people that human beings are capable of achieving great things; and it’s about inspiring future generations to achieve more than we can in our time.
Ad astra,
Jay Margalus