Astrophysics Champions

Our Sixth Form Physics students picked up a Star Wars-themed trophy at an Astrophysics Conference on May the 4th…

Four A Level Physicists joined students from fellow GDST and partner schools for a day of Astrophysics and Computer Science. Hosted by sister school Notting Hill & Ealing High School GDST, the conference provided the opportunity to learn from female PhD students, then apply their knowledge to a challenging team project. Before the competition got underway, lecturers from Imperial College Space & Astrophysics delivered fascinating talks about cometary exploration, the mini magnetosphere of Mercury, and how to use computer formulations to investigate the evolution of stars and planets.

Anisia, Clara, Kaelyn and Molly were tasked with a challenge on the orbital mechanics of the International Space Station, which involved elements of complex computing, despite none of the students studying Computer Science. As part of their presentation, they came up with an ingenious solution to the problem of dealing with space debris, using a self-healing shape memory alloy called nitinol to cover the International Space Station.

Well done to our team who scooped the top prize on the day – a stellar achievement, which was rewarded with a Mandalorian helmet Lego trophy.  The force was clearly with them.