Astronauts Capture Space in a Bottle - FOX News, March 02, 2011
Two astronauts drifting 220 miles above the blue and white blob of planet Earth Monday collected an unusual souvenir: a bottle full of space. Spacewalkers Stephen Bowen and Alvin Drew opened and "filled" a Japanese-designed metal cylinder with space -- or rather the vacuum of outer space -- and then sealed it to be brought back to Earth with space shuttle Discovery. Not that this sampling of space was intended for science. Dubbed "Message in a Bottle," the activity was designed to be more symbolic than scientific. Part of JAXA's Education Payload Observation designed to enlighten the general public about microgravity research and human spaceflight, "Message in a Bottle" is aimed at encouraging children to imagine what is possible.
To me projects like this are very useful in giving general public, and especialy to childeen, something related to space exploration and science, but at the same time - something which an average person can easily understand and visualise. This way children can develop interest to science and later participate in more complex activities in school. "There is no message in there," said Wheelock. "They are going to encourage people — when this goes on tour — to approach this glass-enclosed bottle of space and write whatever message they would put in there to deliver to the rest of the universe.", - says the researcher.
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