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A Royal Australian Air Force No.37 Squadron Hercules has flown a team of NASA engineers and scientists to a remote section of Arnhem land, on a mission to “inspire students and educators”.
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Members of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the One Giant Leap Australia foundation travelled to the Northern Territory aboard a C-130J Hercules transport just over a month ago to deliver the lessons.
One Giant Leap Australia is a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) organisation with an emphasis on space science, technology and exploration.
Jackie Carpenter, founder and director of One Giant Leap Australia said it was important to bring STEM education to remote areas of Australia.
“We do outreach into communities where often the opportunities aren’t there for teachers, the community and kids to understand that this is a huge thing for the country,” Carpenter said.
“Without Air Force support we wouldn’t be here – I cherish this relationship and partnership with the Air Force, because working together we’re showing that we can achieve anything.”
After touring Sydney, Canberra and Wagga, a group of 17 members of One Giant Leap Australia and NASA flew by Hercules from RAAF Base Richmond to Darwin on 29 July.
In Darwin, the crew took Australian Air Force Cadets from No.8 Wing on a flight in the Hercules, also providing them with the chance to speak to NASA and One Giant Leap Australia.
The following day, the Hercules flew five of the group to Nhulunbuy in Arnhem Land, while the remaining contingent flew by charter aircraft to the community of Maningrida.
“Flight crews routine conduct technical discussions, however, this task presented a unique opportunity to cover some amazing experiences,” Wing Commander Ben Christie, Commanding Officer for 37 Squadron, said.
“These are people who actually build and operate robotic vehicles for the moon or Mars exploration, or part of the team running the Cassini probe into deep space, around Saturn and ultimately into Saturn’s atmosphere. It’s been an incredible insight.”
