Team „ReUse in Space“ isthe national winner atJugend Forscht 2018

Team Lara Neubert and Leni Thermann from Reutershagen High School, and Adrian Schorowsky from Erasmus High School in Rostock, have been researching recycling methods on the ISS these past two years.

To this day, valuable raw materials are ejected from the ISS into the black void of space, leaving valuable material unused. Another critical point is the increasing amount of space debris. Which leaves the question, why not recycle in space? With the help of 3D printing, the procedure of reworking materials to a new purpose is now possible. For this project, the students worked on a technical procedure to recycle plastic material for 3D printers. To do so, they analyzed different types of waste, selected recyclable material and then tested the technical feasibility of their concept.

The Federal Jury in the field of geo and spatial sciences voted the team the winner. The day before, the students also received a special prize from the Federal Minister of Defence, Dr. med. Ursula von der Leyen, and in each case a scholarship for a place at a University of the Bundeswehr.

The students were led by Peter Schmedemann from the BilSE Institute for Education and Research GmbH and their teacher Mrs. Mantau (High School Reutershagen).

For almost 10 years, the BilSE Institute and RST Rostock have been cooperating in promoting and supporting student projects in the field of STEM. This year, these efforts were honoured with this federal victory.

Congratulations to the team "ReUse in Space" and all involved!