CASEY Dodd and Rose Britt have been there in a sense - feeling the stresses of take-off and guiding a successful space mission.
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They have walked the launch pads at Cape Canaveral, sat in a simulation take-off pod and had a turn manning Mission Control as part of Loreto College's biennial space camp in the United States.
The pair, now year 11s, said when they saw of Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley entering the International Space Station on Monday, looking relaxed in polo shirts, they knew it took a lot more stress and teamwork to get there than vision of the astronauts suggested.
You never really know what goes on the background sometimes. Space camp helped us appreciate a little of how much effort goes into a moment like that.
- Casey Dodd
"You never really know what goes on in the background sometimes. Space camp helped us appreciate a little of how much effort goes into a moment like that," Casey said.
"(Space camp) was really good insight into something I am interested in and wanted to know a bit more about. I had not idea what I wanted to do before I left for America but I now have a sense of travel to go lots of places."
Casey and Rose said the experience fuelled their interest in science and math subjects at school. Whether they became astronauts or not, they say it was reassuring to know there were so many opportunities for women and girls with careers in science, math, engineering and technology.
Even though Behnken and Hurley were both males, their successful launch and docking at the International Space Station in a joint NASA-SpaceX mission earlier this week, was a fun reminder of their experience.
The 2018 Loreto camp joined with other predominantly female school groups for simulation experience in Arizona, tour of NASA's Florida base and a trip to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington for the week-long trip to the United States.
Rose said she signed up because she wanted to connect with other people around the world with similar interests. She discovered an enormous , eye-opening experience.
"We toured the launch pads and could stand on the launch pads, like where the rocket launched this week," Rose said. "The sheds there are huge. We also got to walk under a life-size rocket, part was open and massive."
The Loreto girls walked on launch pad 39, now leased to SpaceX and used in this week's mission. This is the same launch pad used in NASA's Apollo 11 mission, in which man first walked on the moon.
Loreto's space camp was originally schedule for this year but has been cancelled amid the coronavirus pandemic. The school will consider a trip to NASA, if given the all clear for travel, next year.
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