Hyd students thrilled' after interacting with scientists stationed in Antarctica

 HYDERABAD: From asking about their diet, sleep cycles, everyday chores to why Antarctica was chosen, children from the city were thrilled to ‘grill’ scientists, who are on an expedition in the cold continent. Thanks to BM Birla Science Centre's first-of-its-kind ‘Antarctica experience room’, both children and adults interacted with four ISRO scientists camping at the ground station of Antarctica, including Liju Nayak, Bholenath, Chinmay Kumar Patra and Sahal Muhammad.

The live interaction from the country’s first such facility has perhaps opened the floodgates for the young minds to visit the continent as research scientists into the future.

As for 14-year-old Guru Saketh he ‘can't wait to experience life on the white carpet’, as he calls the largely undiscovered parts of the continent.

"I was curious to learn about what they were eating and if the two-hour daytime affected their sleep cycle and thereby, their work. The wildlife there, the three-layered apparel, footwear and network connectivity, were all intriguing," the ninth grader told Deccan Chronicle.

"The knowledge I learned made me appreciate the work of the scientists and I couldn't stop reading up about it all on the web immediately thereafter. When I asked them about why they chose Antarctica of all the places, they said most signals from satellites sent into space are best received and transmitted from there. Apparently, this kind of precise data is used to study and make the right decisions regarding disaster management, agriculture, fishing, ocean applications and climate variables," said an excited Deekshita A, a student from Genesis School.

Some wanted to know about the lifestyle of scientists, how they deal with emergencies, how they stay fit mentally and physically, how they cook and clean and what they do to beat stress or unwind - a mini table tennis set up that surprised everyone in the room!

Earlier, the space room, where the Antarctica room is housed, was inaugurated by Nirmala Birla, chairperson, GP Birla Archaeological Astronomical and Scientific Research Institute (GPBAASRI), in the presence of its director K.G. Kumar and Dr. Prakash Chauhan, director, NRSC, Hyderabad.

ISRO established the state-of-the-art advanced ground station, which was commissioned in August 2013. It receives data from IRS satellites, which it transfers to NRSC, Hyderabad, explained Dr. G. Srinivasa Rao, group director, NRSC outreach.

The museum also has several exciting exhibits provided by ISRO, including those of GSLV MK III, the launch vehicle of Chandrayaan 2; satellites like Rohini, Apple, Chandrayan 1, Mangalyan and international space station.

Visitors were excited to view the spectacular sceneries of Antarctica through a window in the place the scientists were staying. It's almost like a Bigg Boss room, come to think of it, quipped a visitor.

The science centre plans more such interactive sessions with scientists in the future, subject to weather conditions and network connectivity of the team.