Star Party Program

ABOUT THE SANTA CLARITA COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT

The Santa Clarita Community College District serves a 367-square-mile service area in northern Los Angeles County. College of the Canyons (COC), the single college within the district, has campuses in Valencia and Canyon Country as well as online. Located on a 153-acre campus in Valencia and a 70-acre campus in Canyon Country, the College offers classes during fall and spring semesters, as well as summer and winter intersessions. COC offers approximately 99 associate degree programs and 176 certificates, along with 28 undergraduate and graduate degree and certificate programs available in the University Center from multiple partner institutions.

Opened in 2007, the Canyon Country Campus has become known as a comprehensive campus that offers high-quality instructional programs, supportive student services, and meaningful community partnerships. In the past sixteen years, the campus has offered approximately 9,000 classes and served more than 74,000 students. The campus continues to transform with excellent facilities and enhanced services, such as the Takeda Science Center, which provides state-of-the-art laboratory and classroom space for highdemand instructional programs, and the Student Services & Learning Resources Center, which offers integrated student support functions, library, tutoring, and classrooms. These dynamic facilities provide engaging classrooms, labs, student spaces, and support services in the center of campus. Future facilities anticipated include a dynamic Health & Natural Sciences Center to expand access to science instruction and related career opportunities. Overall, the Canyon Country Campus continues to provide relevant and supportive opportunities and pathways for students, including a significant number of classes offered in focused, short-term formats providing many convenient enrollment options.

College of the Canyons has maintained its status over the years as one of the largest employers in the Santa Clarita Valley and is a vital cultural, educational, and economic force in the region. The Canyon Country Campus contributes to this educational work and community impact. For more information, including class schedules and registration information, please visit the website below:

EVENT AGENDA

6:30 – 7:30pm Science Showcase (Upper Plaza)

Faculty and student presentations / Tours of the Takeda Science Center

6:30 – 10pm Explore Interactive Table Displays and visit our indoor, portable Planetarium (Upper Plaza)

• Stop by the table displays to see activities and projects, provided by College of the Canyons’ student clubs, departments and other groups.

• Sign up to experience our planetarium (Limited space available. First come first serve)

6:30 – 10pm

7:30 – 7:45pm

7:45 – 7:50pm

7:50 – 8pm

8 – 8:45pm

Telescope Viewing (Cougar Way)

Telescopes are provided by the Local Group Astronomy Club of SCV, and by College of the Canyons.

Welcome & Opening Remarks (Amphitheater)

Dr. Ryan Theule, Campus Vice President, and Mr. Anthony Michaelides, Campus Dean

Local Group Astronomy Club (Amphitheater)

Dave Flynn, Member, The Local Group Astronomy Club of SCV

Meet Our Students (Amphitheater)

Professor Teresa Ciardi and the Aerospace and Science Team

The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter-Humanity’s First Flight On Another Planet (Amphitheater)

Presenter: Dr. J. (Bob) Balaram, Inventor and Chief Engineer (Retired) of the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter

8:45 – 9pm Q&A

9 – 9:10pm

Closing Remarks

Thank you for joining us!!

An illustration of NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter flying on Mars. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER

Dr. J. (Bob) Balaram

Inventor and Chief Engineer (Retired) of the ingenuity Mars Helicopter

The Ingenuity Mars HelicopterHumanity’s First Flight On Another Planet

The development of the Mars helicopter, its operations on Mars, and the implications for the future exploration of the Red Planet.

Come listen a bit more...

Bob Balaram recently retired from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. He is the originator of the concept that became the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars and served as its Chief Engineer during its development, test and early operations.

Previously Bob researched precision landing methods for Mars as well as advanced simulation techniques for planetary EDL. He led the team that developed a high-fidelity EDL simulator that has been adopted for use by the Curiosity and Perseverance missions. He is also the co-developer of a simulator used for planetary rover simulation. Bob has led design teams for developing Mars aerobot (aerial robot) perception systems, a deep-diving Venus balloon gondola concept, and balloon-carried imaging sondes for deployment at Venus. He was also a co-developer of the Rocky-7 rover platform, a prototype and precursor to the new generation of rovers such as those on the MER mission.

NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter

MARS HELICOPTER

By Professor Teresa Ciardi

https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter/#

The Mars Helicopter was manufactured here in SoCal at JPL. The primary goal for designing this helicopter is to test whether flight is possible on Mars where the atmosphere is very thin. The atmospheric pressure on Mars is only 1% of Earth’s atmospheric pressure. On Earth, air pushes us with 14.7 pounds of force per square inch. On Mars, the primarily carbon dioxide air would only push on us with about 1/15th of a pound of force per square inch. Thus, a helicopter on Mars must work much harder to achieve flight.

Ingenuity had completed 72 flights as of January 2024, with 128.8 total minutes of flight time. The Mars helicopter has flown a total of 10.5 miles and reached altitudes as high as 78.7 feet (about 6.5 yards). The number that is most astonishing is how fast the blades must rotate for flight to be possible in the thin Martian air. The blades on Ingenuity have a radius of 1.25 meters and spin at 2400 to 2900 rpm which means these 4-foot-long blades spin over 2,000 times in one minute! If you were a bug on the edge of one blade while it was in motion, you would be traveling in a circle at a speed of 700 mph to 843 mph!

How much does it cost to construct something like the Mars Ingenuity Helicopter? It cost 80 million dollars for this 4-pound helicopter.

AEROSPACE & SCIENCE TEAM

Following the Fall 2023 submission of project proposals to NASA RockSatX and NASA HASP programs, the Aerospace and Science Team at College of the Canyons (COC) was selected by NASA to participate in both missions! Once again, COC was the only community college to be selected for these rigorous student-led projects — a win for COC! Both programs entail designing, fabricating, and launching a novel scientific experiment payload aboard NASA flight vehicles. NASA HASP (High Altitude Student Platform) utilizes a high-altitude balloon to reach an altitude of 22 miles above sea level, while the RockSatX program goes even further to the vacuum of space aboard a NASA rocket! With the designing phase completed in the fall, the teams are currently in the testing and fabrication phases of their two experiments in preparation for the summer 2024 launch dates.

Additionally, the group will be sending students to the annual NASA RockOn program where students attend a multi-day workshop that leads them through the assembly of a provided NASA experiment payload. The program culminates in launching the payloads and processing the valuable collected data. RockOn is a unique opportunity that prepares students for the complexities of missions like HASP and RockSatX.

The Aerospace and Science Team is an inclusive program at the College of the Canyons that continually seeks to reach new members with its extracurricular opportunities. With the purpose of “Changing the Future Faces of STEM”, it provides an environment open to all skill levels and interests for students to lead and contribute to real-world projects like NASA HASP, RockSatX and RockOn.

Contact advisor Teresa Ciardi at teresa.ciardi@canyons.edu to join.

Aerospace & Science Team: https://www.canyons.edu/academics/nasa/homepage.php

CLUBS/GROUPS PARTICIPATING AT TONIGHT'S EVENT

Active Minds

For more information, please email: activeminds@my.canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

Associated Student Government (ASG)

For more information, please visit: https://www.canyons.edu/asg

Astronomy & Physics Club

For more information, please email: apclub@my.canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

Biological & Environmental Sciences

For more information, please visit: https://www.canyons.edu/academics/biology/index.php

Chemistry Club

For more information, please email: cocchemclub@gmail.com or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/academics/chemistry/club.php

Civic Engagement Club

For more information, please email: linda.beauregard-vasquez@canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

Connections Club

For more information, please email: christina.chung@canyons.edu

Earth and Space Sciences

For more information, please email: renee.wolf@canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/academics/earthsciences/index.php

Helping Us Become (HUB) Club

For more information, please email: linda.beauregard-vasquez@canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

Library

For more information, please visit: https://www.canyons.edu/academics/library/index.php

Math Club

For more information, please email: mathclub@my.canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

MESA/MESA LAB – Math, Engineering, and Science Achievement

For more information, please visit: https://www.canyons.edu/academics/mesa/index.php

Outdoor Adventure Club

For more information, please email: adventure@my.canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

Technology, Engineering, Coding, and Hardware (TECH) Club

For more information, please email: coctechclub@my.canyons.edu or visit: https://www.canyons.edu/studentservices/campuslife/clubs/list.php

William S. Hart District Education Pathway

For more information, please visit: https://www.hartdistrict.org

CANYON COUNTRY CAMPUS FACILITIES

The Takeda Science Center is a beautiful and important facility at the Canyon Country Campus. Opened for initial classes in Fall 2021, the fourstory structure is situated at the center of campus on Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook Drive, a campus road named in 2018 to honor the Chancellor’s 30+ years of service to College of the Canyons. With nineteen state of the art classrooms and labs, this facility is an important part of student access, engagement, and success on campus. An adjacent terraced amphitheater and plaza also provides student instruction and gathering space outdoors alongside the facility.

The Student Services & Learning Resources Center, located to the south of the Science Center, opened in Spring 2023 and provides a one-stop center for student support services, tutoring, library, and classroom spaces. Together, these two facilities are dynamic, student-benefiting landmarks at the heart of the Canyon Country Campus.

Our sincere THANKS to all who made this evening possible!

College of the Canyons Board of Trustees

Edel Alonso • Sebastian Cazares • Jerry Danielsen •

Charles Lyon • Joan MacGregor

College of the Canyons Chancellor Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook

Guest Speaker, Dr. J. (Bob) Balaram

Inventor and Chief Engineer (Retired) of the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter

The Local Group Astronomy Club of Santa Clarita

The Star Party Committee

Teresa Ciardi • Anthony Michaelides• Jamie Page •

Maria Sanchez • Dr. Ryan Theule

All COC Departments, Clubs, and Staff who support this event!

Additional Information about the Canyon Country Campus, including info on how to support student scholarships, is available at — www.canyons.edu/canyoncountry. Student