Bengaluru: Government school children across the country can soon discover the wonders of space in a bus, Moonshot Wheels, introduced by TeamIndus Foundation. The bus was flagged off by Mr Ratan Tata, former chairman of the Tata Group, on Tuesday at the TeamIndus campus in the city.
The vehicle will cover 11 states in 12 months, aiming to impact over 36,000 students in rural and semi-urban areas. Each child will witness 16 science experiments, live satellite tracking, Moon Rover, spacecraft’s scaled model and an experience zone.
“We are trying to redefine the impossible. We hope to land our spacecraft on the surface of the Moon next Republic Day. However, prior to that, we want to educate our government schoolchildren about space,” said Ms Sheelika Ravishankar, head of marketing and outreach programs, TeamIndus.
The program aims to take STEM (Science, Technology, Education, Math) and space education to the government schoolchildren’s doorstep. “We are building an ecosystem to inspire youth of the country,” she said.
The TeamIndus Foundation has partnered with Agastya International Foundation, which is dedicated to provide STEM education through real-like examples. Mr Ramji Raghavan, founder and chairman, Agastya International Foundation, said, “We hope to help empower underprivileged children and inspire them to think beyond their schools, districts and states. We are happy to associate with the team that is going to put a robot on the Moon.”
Moonshot Wheels will begin in Karnataka with two trained teachers to explain the experiments to kids. Kids who grasp the concept and outperform will be recognised and their photos along with the names will be sent to the Moon when TeamIndus launches its mission.
