Wellesley student selected for internship

Staff Writer
Wicked Local
Wellesley High School student Rachel White

Rachel White, a student from Wellesley High School, was among the 9% of applicants selected for the Student Enhancement in Earth and Space Science summer internship hosted by The University of Texas at Austin’s Center for Space Research.

This nationally competitive program sponsored by NASA’s Texas Space Grant Consortium selects students to conduct authentic research using NASA data. The SEES 2020 internship was completed online due to the pandemic. White attended lectures by NASA scientists, conducted investigations, wrote reports and produced a presentation remotely as part of the Mars 2020 team.

White describes her experience as a SEES intern as a great way to work alongside a group of extremely motivated students from all over the country who are interested in space research.

“I participated in the Mars rover site analysis group,” said White. “Our task was to identify sample sites from the geological, topographical and rover function information available from NASA scientists. Collaborating online was a challenging but rewarding experience from which I learned so much. Learning from scientists who work directly on the subjects we researched was an amazing experience. I really appreciate the wonderful opportunity that SEES and NASA provided me this summer.”

White worked with NASA scientists Michael Thorpe with the NASA Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science team and Valerie Payre, a post-doc at Rice University. As the newest NASA rover prepared for its trip to the red planet, which occurred July 31, Thorpe and Payre provided students the opportunity to explore and contribute to the research on how scientists will return the first ever surface samples from Mars. Students explored how the Mars 2020 rover will traverse the landing site of Jezero Crater and came up with a sampling strategy. During the project, students learned how geologists on Earth prioritize samples and developed a plan to return the most valuable samples from Mars.

SEES high school interns work with scientists and engineers to conduct authentic research using NASA data and analysis tools. Teams are organized around an aerospace or space science theme drawn from NASA’s engineering and scientific research programs. SEES sponsored several team challenges this summer, including designing Mars habitats, exploring lunar environments, tracing COVID-19 using NASA technologies and examining the relationship of observed mosquito habitats to land cover and environmental data obtained from satellites.

The SEES internship provides an outlet for the excitement many students feel about Earth and space science. Interns are offered an opportunity to work with professional scientists and engineers at the cutting edge of NASA science, experience being part of a science team, and explore STEM career options firsthand.

The STEM Enhancement in Earth Science project is supported by National Aeronautics and Space Administration cooperative agreements NNX16AB89A to the University of Texas Austin for the STEM Enhancement in Earth Science and NNX16AE28A to the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies for the NASA Earth Science Education Collaborative for the SEES Mosquito Mappers Team.

For information, contact Margaret Baguio, The University of Texas at Austin Center for Space Research, at 512-423-4039 or baguio@csr.utexas.edu or White at Rachel7white@gmail.com.