#StudentAstronaut contest winner, Julia Velasquez, a Deaf student from UC San Diego, was featured on a special episode of Xploration Outer Space with host Emily Calandrelli this weekend, INN reports.
The episode was aired mainly on Fox broadcast stations across the country and was also made available on Amazon, Hulu, Roku, and YahooView.
In March 2017, Xploration Outer Space launched its third annual #StudentAstronaut contest, gathering submissions from high school and college students from around the country, INN gathered.
Like the previous #StudentAstronaut contests, it was intended to afford the Nation’s most passionate science students a unique, hands-on learning experience. The prize was an all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii to experience an immersive 24-hour simulation at the world-renowned HI-SEAS habitat on Mauna Loa, where participants experience what it is like to live on Mars.
This year, entrants were asked to answer three questions in a short video and submit it to our Xploration Station Facebook page. Velasquez, who is Deaf, immediately caught the attention of the organisers. Her entry, making the case that space exploration should be open to everyone, was done in American Sign Language.
On July 20th, 2017, Velasquez was announced as latest edition, #StudentAstronaut winner. The Xploration Outer Space production crew traveled to the University of California San Diego to surprise her in class with the news. Host Emily Calandrelli had prerecorded a message, which played on an overhead screen during a regular class session.
Below is the moment Velasquez found out she had won.
Clearly, Velasquez had struck a chord. Her story went viral on Facebook, reaching over 750,000 people from around the world. Many of the comments came from other Deaf individuals who saw Velasquez as a role model and source of pride.
Afterward, the organisers spoke with Velasquez about the honor. “As the first Deaf #StudentAstronaut, I aim to share with the world that we are a thriving community, rich in culture and language,” she signed. “This will send a powerful message on the importance of inclusivity in science and space exploration” she responded.
Several weeks later, Velasquez was flown to Hawaii to meet Calandrelli for a special episode of Xploration Outer Space at the HI-SEAS habitat in Hawaii.
Among the activities was a rover mission on Mauna Loa, the volcano that the HI-SEAS habitat sits atop. To perform the rover mission, Velasquez and Calandrelli suited up like real Mars astronauts. Whenever they stepped outside the habitat and onto the “Martian” surface, Calandrelli and crew member Brian Ramos had only one primary form of communication: radio headsets.
While on their mission, their headsets stopped working due to a technical issue. Luckily, Velasquez and Ramos were able to communicate using American Sign Language. Their ability to communicate without verbal language ultimately saved their mission and proved that signing could be a valuable tool for those engaged in space exploration.
Velasquez and Calandrelli ended their experience 13,000 feet above the earth at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, home to one of the world’s most powerful telescopes. Standing outside above the clouds, Velasquez was reminded of her childhood when she and her father would gaze up at the nighttime sky, counting the stars, fascinated and curious about the universe.
This will send a powerful message on the importance of inclusivity in science and space exploration.
Maybe one day she will be among those who explore it – as the first-ever Deaf astronaut. INN reports.