An experiment designed by two Osbourn High School students during their time at Metz has officially reached microgravity aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket. The launch took place yesterday, September 18, 2025, after more than three years of preparation and delays.
Sophia Garcia and Victoria Ingram, both seniors at Osbourn, first worked on the project as middle schoolers at Metz Middle School. Their team, Purple Wind, was selected as a winner in the inaugural NASA TechRise Student Challenge in 2022. The challenge, administered by Future Engineers through NASA’s Flight Opportunities program, invited students in grades sixth through twelfth to design experiments to be tested in microgravity on suborbital rockets or high-altitude balloons.
Purple Wind’s experiment was inspired by an interest in Mars colonization and the question of how plant life might be supported on the planet. The team proposed testing whether wind on Mars could power LED lights to promote vegetation growth.
As a winning team, Purple Wind received $1,500 to build their experiment, a suite of materials for preparing their payloads, access to flight simulator software and technical support from experts. While they began the project as Metz students, Garcia and Ingram submitted the finalized experiment in fall 2022 as freshmen at Osbourn.
After delays pushed back the original 2023 flight schedule, their payload successfully launched yesterday on Blue Origin’s NS-25 mission, carrying 24 student and research payloads into suborbital space. During the flight, the students’ experiment experienced three minutes of microgravity, giving them valuable data on their innovative concept.
“I am incredibly proud of our students. Being selected by NASA shows their creativity, teamwork, and determination,” said Dr. Kevin Newman, Superintendent of Manassas City Public Schools. “This accomplishment proves the limitless potential of Manassas City students.”
The NASA TechRise Challenge received more than 600 proposals nationwide in its first year, with only 57 teams selected. Metz Middle School’s Purple Wind was the only middle school team in Virginia chosen.
To learn more about the launch, visit Blue Origin’s coverage or watch the full flight.