On October 28, 2022, two teams, made up of 5th-11th grade learners from Santa Clarita Valley International Charter School and iLEAD Exploration, sought to accomplish what few have: Prepare an experiment to be sent to the International Space Station.

Team Seagrass ventured north to the Elkhorn Slough National Estuary Research Reserve to harvest fresh Zostera marina and prepare their Mixstix at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories alongside subject matter experts Peggy Folleta and Kenton Parker.

Led by Kathleen Fredette, Team Yucca loaded their Mixstix in the Santa Clarita Valley International Charter School Upper School Laboratory under the guidance of subject matter experts Dr. Jacob Cohen and Melanie Kramer.

Both experiments have successfully launched to the International Space Station to be conducted, with a splashdown target date in mid-January. Congratulations, Team Seagrass and Team Yucca!