Five Carthage College students work with NASA, win $10,000 for tech invention

It always goes back to a high school science teacher.

At least that's what Carthage College physics major Celestine Anada said. And her classmates and research colleagues, Taylor Peterson and Cassi Bossong, couldn't agree more.

"My high school physics teacher was just a phenomenal scientist and teacher as well, and he really got me to fall in love with physics and what you can do with it, and it kind of just grew from there," Anada said. 

Each student ultimately joined the Carthage College Space Sciences program, an undergraduate research effort funded through the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium.

The program has about 10 students working on various projects. Students filter in and out, always transferring what they learned to new recruits so projects can continue.

With two other Carthage students, Bennet Bartel and Nick Bartel, the group decided to refine what's known as the modal propellant gauging device that Carthage has been working on with NASA since 2011. Instead of focusing just on rockets, they decided to take the device to a different level: aircraft. 

"The modal propelling gauging device is a robust and reliable technique to measure liquid in stationary and sloshing vessels using acoustics," Peterson said. "For modal propelling gauging, or MPG, all we need are a few sensors to adhere outside of the tank so going inside of the tank doesn't have to happen. It is far more efficient and lightweight." 

Their new idea is not only efficient and cost-saving, but it is also a winner. Their invention recently won the MIT-Lemelson "Move It" award for $10,000. 

The MIT-Lemelson award honors collegiate inventors around the country and is open to teams of undergraduate students or individual graduate students who have technology-based inventions pertaining to a significant sector of the economy: health care; food/water and agriculture; transportation and mobility; and consumer devices and products. 

The team's device, which aims to improve the safety of air and space travel, provides "real-time fuel gauging for aircraft, expanding the original method used for spacecraft developed by their faculty adviser and colleagues at NASA," the MIT-Lemelson website says. 

Since most traditional fuel gauging methods penetrate the walls of the tank and need to be inside, a lot of weight is added to the aircraft and therefore, there is a chance for leakage. 

The team was not expecting to win.

"We are a small, liberal arts school with less than 10,000 people and most schools that win it are bigger schools that you always hear about on the news for science and engineering, so it's crazy," Bossong said. 

"I was kind of in disbelief," said Peterson, who was in one of her classes when she got the congratulatory email. "There were a lot of applicants and top schools, it kind of felt unreal and all the hard work definitely paid off." 

As for what the team will use the $10,000 for is still undecided.

Bossong's love of space "started when I was five years old, when my grandparents took me to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Alabama," she said. "That's where I fell in love with space and stars and all of that crazy stuff." 

When she went to high school, her inspiration was further solidified.

"I had a really amazing physics teacher who kind of just sealed the deal for me and made me want to pursue a career in space," Bossong said. 

For Peterson, after having a great physics teacher in high school, it was only natural to continue her path in the field of science. 

"I decided to make physics my major and I came into Carthage wanting to do astrophysics, but then when I found out about these projects. I joined as soon as I could and kind of found love for aerospace and engineering," Peterson said. 

Though the pandemic has put minor bumps in the road for how the team will continue its work, Bossong said it is nothing they can't get past as they have special permission to be on Carthage's campus with protocols in place to continue their work.