Pinoy students’ space suit wins gold award at int’l contest in Turkey

A space suit conceptualized and invented by Filipino students bagged the gold award at an international robotics contest in Turkey last week.

The First Lego League Open International Turkey 2019, with the theme "Into Orbit," challenged 82 teams of students aged 17 and below from 41 countries to come up with solutions to physical and social problems associated with long-duration space flight.

The Philippine Robotics National Team, composed of 10 students and two coaches from Dr. Yanga’s College Inc., won the highest honor for their Project Mu.S.C.A.

This special suit aims to help astronauts solve musculoskeletal problems while in outer space and avoid bone loss and loss of muscle mass due to the microgravity environment.

This branchild of the Filipino students can monitor the pulse rate and maintain the proper posture of astronauts in space; facilitate exercise and massage of their arms and legs; keep the right body temperature for their body; and protect them from radiation.

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) congratulated the young robotics experts for their victory.

“The Philippine Robotics National Team made the country proud and opened doors for future robotics experts. Robotics will play a crucial role in the country’s transition to Industrial Revolution 4.0," said DOST-Science Education Institute Director Dr. Josette Biyo.

"These victories will help us gain traction to push for more youth science programs that would prepare the youth for jobs of the future,” she added.

The brains behind the Project Mu.S.C.A. are the following:

• Gwyneth Sabusap,
• Aaron James Amar,
• Andrea Luz Guevarra,
• Daniella De Guzman,
• Annette Nicole Ambi,
• Nicole Flores,
• Shervie Dela Cruz,
• Gabriel Ortega,
• Michael Ronnie Estrella,
• Renz Daren Flaviano,
• Assistant Coach RV Mendoza, and
• Coach Romyr Gimeno

— Dona Magsino/MDM, GMA News