Students involved in the Mars Robotics Association are part of an incredible experience that not many teens their age have had — a project they’ve worked on will be sent to the International Space Station.

The “Cosmic Critters,” a group of five area high school students, including one student from the Butler Area School District, worked on the project during the Go For Launch space camp last summer in Mars with retired astronaut Wendy Lawrence.

That experience alone — getting to work with a retired astronaut — is an adventure the likes of which few adults, let alone high school students, ever get to have.

Imagine being in high school and having even a passing interest in the skills involved in robotics — math, science, programming, problem solving, engineering, team work and other talents — and getting a chance to use those skills outside the classroom in a way that eventually sends a project you’ve worked on to the International Space Station.

Do you think that might give you motivation toward a future career path? Do you think it might give you the idea that you can do incredible things? Do you think it might just give you the confidence in your skills to take them more seriously?

The Cosmic Critters designed the shoebox-sized science experiment and tweaked it to make it suitable to fly on the International Space Station. The purpose of the experiment is to study physarum polycephalum — better known as slime mold — and how it would behave in a zero-gravity environment. The actual project will be built by Kentucky-based aerospace company Space Tango to be loaded onto the space station in August or September.

Go for Launch returns to Mars Friday and Saturday, June 27 and 28, and will feature another experiment contest. More students will get the OK for launch on their dreams and future plans.

We applaud the project and wish the next generation of leaders and scientists the best.

— KL