15 student experiments aboard SpaceX Dragon capsule

Fifteen student experiments will be conducted aboard the International Space Station after making their way there on the SpaceX’s Dragon capsule.

The experiments, which are collectively known as Aquarius, were sent to space on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that launched Tuesday and were inside the Dragon capsule that has now docked at the International Space Station.

The experiments were designed by 13 teams from across the country that submitted their proposals and were picked out of a pool of 779 student teams.

The youngest teams were composed of middle-school students while the oldest team was from a community college. Two of the teams were from California.

Those experiments will “assess the effects of microgravity on physical, chemical and biological systems,” according to a NASA press release.

“This unique student activity adds a new dimension to the International Space Station and its role as America’s only orbiting national laboratory,” said Leland Melvin, NASA’s associate administrator for Education, in a statement. “It also clearly demonstrates that students still can actively participate in NASA microgravity opportunities in the post-shuttle era.”

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