The Salvadoran NASA engineer, Patricia Ortiz, announces an aerospace camp for Salvadoran teens
The Salvadoran aerospace engineer Patricia Ortiz, who works as a project manager at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), announced the development of an aerospace camp aimed at Salvadoran adolescents, with the objective of encouraging their interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.
The camp will take place next September, from the 23rd to the 25th, and will be directed at adolescents aged 11 to 15.
“We will develop it at Universidad Don Bosco; we are going to have teams of five members. The theme is Mars Frontier, and we will do challenges involving building a habitat. We are going to simulate how to survive on Mars for the first 72 hours, and we will do different challenges, including planning a colony on Mars,” the Salvadoran announced yesterday.
Ortiz is currently visiting El Salvador, where she has held meetings with students at different educational centers, such as the Catholic Educational Complex “Nuestra Señora de la Paz” in Olocuilta, and the National Institute of San Miguel Tepezontes.
The camp is part of her initiative “Kids Need Space,” a platform that promotes aerospace education through hands-on experiences with students from Latin America, the United States, and Europe.
Artemis II
During these activities, the scientist shared her professional experience and motivated youth to consider scientific careers. “My mission is to inspire and motivate students so that in the future they can be a workforce of aerospace engineers and scientists,” she expressed.
The aerospace engineer recounted her experience with the Artemis II space mission, which took humans to orbit the Moon after 50 years. Ortiz participated and led the construction of the spectrometer for the Orion spacecraft's shield, which protected the four astronauts. “It took nearly 10 years to develop this parachute system,” she pointed out.
Ortiz highlighted the importance of promoting scientific vocations in the country and noted that these types of programs seek to provide tools to youth, especially those from contexts with fewer opportunities, so they can develop in technological fields.
The engineer's visit takes place within the framework of recognition for Salvadorans who stand out abroad and for their participation in high-level scientific projects.
According to a previous publication, Ortiz has highlighted her Salvadoran heritage and her interest in contributing to the country's educational development through programs that bring science closer to new generations.