During December 1999 through April of this year, DKMC, MSU-B, and MSU collaborated on a NASA student research project.  The goal of the project was two fold; to provide outreach to local middle schools and to provide a genuine research opportunity for college students using the unique facilities provided by NASA's Reduced Gravity Flight Program.  The project was funded through the Montana Space Grant Consortium (MSGC), Packard Foundation Funds, and NASA.

Local school outreach coordination was the primary responsibility of the DKMC-TCRSI project.  With the school contact system in place with the TCRSI program, TCRSI Site Coordinator, Brian Stiff, and Science Instructor, Bob Madsen, were able to setup classroom outreach with Lame Deer Middle School, Ashland Public, NCTS, Colstrip Middle School, Lockwood Junior High, Hardin Elementary, Pryor Elementary, Polson Elementary School.  This rare opportunity provided teachers and students from grades 3-8 to be directly involved with a research project that included NASA.  Classroom presentations of the project were provided by DKMC students (Desiree Harris, Adea Green, and Elizabeth McMakin), MSU-B students (Aimee Crowley & Heather Stein), and DKMC staff (Bob Madsen and Brian Stiff).  Presentations included demonstrating models of materials to be used in the research project, demonstration of onion root tip growth and root tip slide preparations, discussion of alfalfa leaf cutting bees, and the research process.   Following the presentations, several classrooms were provided with materials in order to do pre-flight research.  Materials provided to each classroom were; live alfalfa leaf cutting bees, a cage to keep the bees in, warming light to provide the appropriate temperature to help maintain the bees, bee feeders, and two basic food sources-bee pollen and a diluted honey mixture.  Goals of the pre-flight research were to establish methods of maintaining live alfalfa leaf cutting bees, determining alternate food types that would work as bee attractants, and to determine which colors and geometric patterns alfalfa leaf cutting bees were most attracted to.

Project material development was a significant part of the work done by students from DKMC, MSU-B, and MSU.  Students from DKMC; Desiree Harris, Delphine Medicine Horse, Adea Green, Marti Caywood, Feather Roland, Angelica Rowland, and Elizabeth McMakin built or assisted in the construction of bee cages and feeders, bee incubators, a prototype flight chamber, and other materials used in the experiment. Students from MSU's Engineering Department; Connie Nelson, Michelle LindMier, and Jil Hallenberg, with the assistance of faculty advisors designed and built the flight chamber that would carry the bees and onion bulbs on NASA's KC-135A reduced gravity aircraft.  The chamber had to meet very strict NASA specifications in order to be qualified for the flight.

During the two-week trip to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, contacts with the classrooms was made by Bob Madsen to gather information developed by the students and teachers for use in the research project that flew on NASA's KC-135A Reduced Gravity Aircraft, also known as the "Vomit Comet".  Students from DKMC, MSU-B, and MSU flew the research project on March 15th and 16th and used video cameras to record bee activity during the flight in which the bees, and students, under went zero to two-G variant gravity conditions.  The variant gravity conditions experienced by the bees and students are the result of the parabolic flight pattern of the KC-135A ZERO-G aircraft.  The KC135A climbs to an altitude of 34,500 feet and does a controlled 25 second dive to 24,000 feet during which time all contents of the KC-135A experience zero gravity.  Upon reaching the 24,000 foot altitude, the KC-135A pulls out of the dive, at which time 1.8 to 2.0 gravity is experienced, and prepares to repeat another parabola.   The bees and students flew 32 parabolas on each of the two days, hence the name "Vomit Comet"

Upon returning from NASA, DKMC students, Bob Madsen, and Brian Stiff returned to the classrooms to present the video taped data, as well as video of the student NASA experience, to teachers and students.  Currently the classrooms are working with the taped data to turn it into numerical data for analysis.  Initial results show that the experiment was a success and further information will be provided at a later date.

This is only a brief summary of a five-month project that involved students and teachers from K-12 schools, Chief Dull Knife College staff and students, Montana State University-Billings, and Montana State University.  For more information regarding the MSGC/NASA Bee research project contact Brian Stiff at stiff@dkmc.cc.mt.us or Bob Madsen at bmadsen@dkmc.cc.mt.us .