Higher Ed Utah

When you boil water here on Earth, bubbles go up, releasing energy. But what happens if you try it in space where there is no gravity?

A group of Utah State University students, members of the Get Away Special “GAS” club, decided to find out. After nearly a year of preparation and experimentation, they headed to NASA for some answers.

“A lot of the things we do on Earth involve boiling in some manner. We cook with boiling, most of our power is generated with boiling water, powering turbines and stuff like that,” said Phillip Anderson, a USU graduate student and GAS member. That’s why researchers want to know more about boiling in space.

In order for advanced computers or other technology to function on Mars, the moon or elsewhere in space, researchers must determine how to generate power or remove heat in the most effective way possible, Anderson and the other budding scientists say.

The GAS Club won one of 14 spots in NASA’s Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program, also known as “Microgravity University,” after submitting an application for their “Follow-up Nucleate Boiling On-flight Experiment” or FUNBOE. The project follows a previous USU experiment that flew on space shuttle Endeavour in 2001.

Read the entire article at sltrib.com.