AFA's StellarXplorers Announces National Champions

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., April 30, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Air Force Association's (AFA) StellarXplorers program - the National High School Space Challenge - announced the National Champions of its fourth National Finals Competition held April 18-20, 2018.

Of the original 180 teams from across the nation and three overseas locations, the top ten made it to the National Finals Competition. Team "Tahsin Machine" from Great Mills High School in Great Mills, MD took home the championship after a rigorous week competing to define orbits, spacecraft components, and launch vehicles to meet a set of mission requirements.

Team "SpaceY" from Palos Verdes Peninsula High School in Rolling Hills Estates, CA was the second place team in the competition and Team "Boing," also from Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, came in third place.

"The fourth season of StellarXplorers was the program's biggest and most challenging yet. It was extremely rewarding to engage with these future aerospace leaders during the Finals Competition," said Denise Hollywood, AFA Executive Vice President. "AFA is proud to provide students with valuable opportunities to learn about space and career fields in STEM."

After an intense eight-hour competition, teams were required to present a scored briefing to a panel of experts and take a quiz to determine the extent of their understanding of space the following day.

"The caliber of our competitors continues to astound me," said Stephen K. Gourley, StellarXplorers program director. "Once again, the winning team exceeded the maximum score even the space-seasoned judges thought possible. Many of the competitors are headed to MIT, CalTech, and other prestigious schools – we wish them all the best."

StellarXplorers, an education initiative established by AFA, is a space system engineering competition designed to inspire students toward futures in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Program sponsors include the U.S. Air Force STEM Program, United Launch Alliance, Orbital ATK, Kratos Defense and Security Solutions, and Space Exploration Technologies, with additional support from the Educational Alliance of Analytical Graphics, Inc, The Space Foundation, and Coyote Enterprises.

Registration for Season V opens on May 1. To learn more about this program, visit StellarXplorers' website www.StellarXplorers.org.

The Air Force Association is a non-profit, independent, professional military and aerospace education association. Our mission is to promote a dominant United States Air Force and a strong national defense, and to honor Airmen and our Air Force Heritage.

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SOURCE Air Force Association