San Gabriel Valley : Students Play ‘Stump the Scientists’ at JPL
A visiting student left scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory momentarily speechless when he asked them one of the oldest questions in science: “How were the planets formed?”
The facility in La Canada-Flintridge invited 200 students from around Los Angeles to participate Thursday in “Outer Planets Day.”
Student journalists from high schools participated in a real-life press conference announcing the pending arrival of the Galileo space probe to Jupiter, and researchers set up exhibits describing JPL’s work in space exploration.
Students asked researchers a range of questions about the solar system, from why the planets are round (it’s the most stable shape for gases) to how cold it gets on Pluto (minus 255 degrees Celsius).
“I learned a lot about the experiments they are going to do,” said Jason Lopez, 16, a junior at San Gabriel High School. He plans to write a story for his high school paper, The Matador.
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