BlueSky10

In response to the Department of Education’s CTE Mission CubeSat Competition, NAF Engineering students were invited to participate on the proposal and design team. Eight students met weekly via Google Meet with Ms. Parkman and Mr. Estes to develop the BlueSky10 CubeSat proposal. Below, is the abstract from the proposal that outlines the vision for BlueSky10 and its services to the community.

Mooresville, NC, once a small village, has evolved into a rapidly growing town with lush green space and blue skies. Based on the town’s growth and development plan, approximately 3,400 acres of land development will occur over the next 20 years and the population will continue to grow. New development and construction equate to potential changes in air quality, temperature, loss of green space, deforestation and increases in impervious surfaces.

Mooresville High School’s CubeSat project, BlueSky10, proposes to monitor the effect of this growth and provide that data to the greater Mooresville community. Our project will address the research question: "What effect does the growth of the Town of Mooresville have on air quality, land use, and temperature?" BlueSky10 will be flown by drone and launched to capture weather and temperature data, air quality data, and land use images around Mooresville and the developing areas.

During Phase 2, BlueSky10 was built and launched through the collaborative efforts of NAF Engineering Academy students, CTE and core classes, faculty and community mentors as a community outreach tool to communicate relevant environmental monitoring data to schools and the community while providing the opportunity to promote CTE classes related to the project. This project allows MHS CTE to deepen our connections with our community partners and respond to the interests that students have to explore STEM careers, provide community partner networking, expanded CTE programs of study, and integrate competitions with core and CTE clubs and camps.