News Post
Sofía López '26 Launches Experiment in Space
Sofía López '26 has always loved science. When she heard about the Cubes in Space program as a freshman, she jumped at the opportunity to send her own experiments up into space; she sent two experiments up before sophomore year, but one led to no results due to a delay in the experiment’s return. That experience did not dissuade her from trying again.
Cubes in Space is, according to its website, the only global STEM program for 11-18 year-olds providing suborbital flight project opportunities on NASA missions. The students, who receive a scholarship to become a part of the program, pick a project focus and get the opportunity to send their project, packaged in a cube, on a suborbital rocket launched by NASA.
This past summer, Sofía was ready. Last spring, as she worked her way through ideas, she spoke with Mr. Que Haralson, chemistry teacher, and landed on one that intrigued her and would work: the effect of radiation in space on prosthetic materials. “I’m so grateful to Mr. Haralson for all of his support,” she said.
In 2022, the astronaut John McFall sparked concerns over whether his prosthetic leg could emit poisonous gasses inside a space station in the future, and the European Space Agency began its research. While McFall has since completed physical requirements for space travel, his prosthetic leg needed to undergo testing to confirm fit and whether the material could give off toxic fumes.
“I wanted to see if I could beat the space agency for the results,” said Sofia. ESA had not released results from their study when Sofía’s experiment launched . “Mine might not hold the most impact, but it might spread awareness about the inclusion of people with prosthetics or disabilities in space.”
Sofía worked with two prosthetic companies - Dankmeyer and Agility - and even spent the day at Dankmeyer to see the materials they were producing, including tagging along to doctor’s visits fitting patients. Dankmeyer provided two carbon fiber samples - one old, one new - for Sofía to send to space, in addition to other prosthetic materials like gel liners, foams, resins, and plastics.
And in June, the rocket launched.
“It was exciting to watch, but then getting it back and finding actual results was slightly surprising,” said Sofia, referencing her previous experiment on live yeast cultures that had been delayed on its return to her the previous year. “I expected to see something, but I wasn’t sure if it would work.”
Sofía shared that the carbon fiber samples were exposed for a very short period of time. “There were three possible harmful gasses that were present in the carbon fiber that the prosthesis is made out of … After exposure, the newer one looked a lot like the older one, which shows it emitted gasses even though it was only exposed for 10 minutes,” she shared. “Astronauts are exposed for days or months, so it would be a lot more.”
Sofía is analyzing the results at UMBC with Dr. Cynthia Tope Niedermaier's group and their Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer.
She’s already a pro at presenting her research, having done so at an aerospace conference recently. “I think [my time at Visi] has really prepared me to talk to professionals in the field and present, and also to work in actual lab,” said Sofia, who is also interning at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab. “I think that Visi has given me the opportunity to be confident in my own ideas and go into an environment where there are less women … I’m able to defend what have to say.”
Sofía hopes to one day become a mechanical or aerospace engineer - and she’s well on her way. Kudos, Sofia!
- STEM