From Small Town to the Sun: Stockbridge FFA Students Launch Satellite to Capture Solar Eclipse
by Eliana Johnson
For Stockbridge High School senior Jason Gruber, studying space isn’t a simple hobby; it’s a complete and utter obsession.
Gruber always has loved space. The mysticism, untold stories, and endless opportunities waiting to be discovered have constantly drawn him in.
“It’s always been fascinating because you never hear stories about students doing research in space. It’s a lot harder to do this research, and there’s so much to learn about space,” Gruber said.
To nurture and foster his infatuation, Gruber found himself drawn to space education. In a town with only one flashing red stoplight, no grocery store, and 98 kids in the current graduating class, authentic space education simply didn’t seem attainable.
However, with few elective and extracurricular options to choose from, Gruber as a sophomore found himself in a lucrative, student-led STEM class called “Special Projects Lab,” which since has merged with the Future Farmers of America (FFA) program.
“I joined this class because of the projects that cause a positive impact and contribute to society,” Gruber said.
Special Projects Lab has worked with Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Michigan State University, University of Toledo and nonprofit POW recovery organizations such as Project Recover. Joining this class, Gruber felt a spark. This spark lit a passion for engineering and an unrelenting desire to learn and grow.
In December of his sophomore year, Gruber and his colleagues from Special Projects Lab attended the annual American Geophysical Union Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana. While at the hotel, Gruber and fellow student, Jack Hammerberg, struck up a conversation with a government research scientist over a dimly lit table and a can of Diet Coke. The scientist explained how he was working on miniature satellites–also known as CubeSats–which can collect atmospheric and meteorological data, while remaining small and cost-effective.
These 10-by-10-by-10 centimeter satellites can be launched on high-altitude balloons (HABs), or packed into rockets to be launched into the stratosphere. Gruber and Hammerberg instantly knew that this was the project they wanted to pursue.
“I mainly wanted to do a CubeSat because it was different from the other projects we had done. It was both software- and hardware-based, and I wanted to continue our relationship with NASA, as we’d previously helped them on agricultural research projects,” Hammerberg said.
Over the next nine months, the two students enlisted help from their peers, as well as NearSpace education, a CubeSat manufacturer and educator, to help complete this project. After tireless efforts and an unshakable resolve, Special Projects Lab’s team launched their first CubeSat in September 2023.
“It was satisfying to see the students’ work finally come to fruition. It’s not often in today’s school environment that you have an academic team stick together over two school years to complete such a substantial project,” Robert Richards, Special Projects Lab teacher said.
The satellite was loaded onto a Styrofoam-packed payload equipped with sensors and cameras, hung off of a hydrogen-filled HAB, and launched into the stratosphere, capturing atmospheric data and pictures of the curvature of the Earth. Their initial mission was a success, but the students were hungry for more.
“We wanted to collect more atmospheric data that we weren’t able to with our rudimentary CubeSat,” Gruber said.
However, with Hammerberg’s impending graduation, Gruber, now a junior, needed to recruit more students to his project. Gruber recruited sophomore engineers Alayna Adkins, Logan Hollenbeck and Brock Rochow to blaze a trail to the stars.
“I felt like this was a great opportunity to be there, have fun, and get outside of my comfort zone. I was glad to help out and grow my skills,” Hollenbeck said.
The students took their original design and modified it to meet the needs of their next project: putting their CubeSat on a rocket. Partnering with South African rocket company MaxIQ, and New Jersey-based satellite company A3Sat, Special Projects Lab launched the same satellite on a MaxIQ rocket in South Africa in March of the same year. The atmospheric results were used to further future launches by MaxIQ.
Come Gruber’s senior year, Special Projects Lab may have merged with the FFA and taken on a new name, but Gruber and his team’s passion for space education and exploration never faltered.
“FFA is all about agriculture, but space still has a big impact on agriculture, such as satellites and weather conditions,” Gruber said.
Though re-branded, Gruber took the emergence of FFA and its required supervised agricultural experiences (SAEs) as an opportunity to capitalize on the impending solar eclipse. Armed with the full force of the FFA community and a fiery passion to see his ultimate mission to fruition, Gruber set off to capture this monumental. once-in-a-20-year event.
“It was my first total eclipse in person, so I was super excited to see it,” Gruber said.
Instead of planting flowers, raising bunnies, or milking cows like typical SAE projects, Gruber yearned for the seemingly impossible, given his rural circumstances.
“It’s all about influence and guidance. With Mr. Richards’ help, we’re able to go to levels that most people aren’t able to go. We don’t let our circumstances define us. If you have passion and determination, nothing is impossible,” Gruber said
On April 8, millions of Americans crowded plazas, parking lots and playgrounds to watch a rare occurrence that only happens roughly every 20 years. Gruber and his team were in Marion, Indiana, preparing for the launch of their satellite on NearSpace Education’s HAB.
With the assistance of NearSpace and hours of preparation, the time had come. Equipped with GPS trackers, numerous cameras, and other data sensors, the team members launched their satellite. Even with the danger of rough winds potentially blowing the HAB off course, the team persevered and was rewarded with the fruits of its labors. The HAB flew into the stratosphere and effectively captured raw images of the total solar eclipse. The HAB reached nearly 80,000 feet, flying so far as to capture pictures of the Earth’s curvature. This was it. Gruber and his team had done it. Their toils, setbacks and obstacles were behind them as they watched their satellite ascend into the stratosphere.
“There was a lot to learn from this project, we had to dodge some obstacles and mistakes, but overall, I’m so proud of our team and the moment we captured,” Gruber said.
Now, with the impending graduation of the project’s front-runner, the team still will persevere.
“Although a valuable member of our team is graduating, we’ll still be attacking many different projects next year, including more HAB launches,” junior Brock Rochow states.
Hoping to further their project, the team will launch its satellite at local agricultural showcases, with the aim to launch its CubeSat on a NASA rocket.
“We’re hopefully going to launch on a NASA rocket before I graduate this next year. We’ll make some small changes to ensure everything runs smoothly,” junior Alayna Adkins said.
From the streets of Stockbridge to the stars, and to the sun, these students didn’t let pre-conceived notions and inhibitions tie them down. They let their dreams take flight and captured something monumental, shattering the rural ceiling in the process.
A graph of temperature and luminosity sensor readings from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. UTC April 8. As the balloon rose higher into the atmosphere, it reached more sunlight causing a spike in luminosity. But temperatures in the outer atmosphere are far colder, representing the drop in temperature.
The curvature of the Earth taken from Stockbridge students’ satellite roughly 70,000 feet up. The photo was taken with a GoPro 360 camera on the satellite.
Senior Jason Gruber (left) and freshman Will Gancer work on piecing
together the high-altitude balloon that will carry the satellite.
Senior Jason Gruber (left) and Junior Brock Rochow (right)
adjust the command module.
