sunshield wipers

Mississauga | Learning Through the Looking Glass

Awards & Nominations

sunshield wipers has received the following awards and nominations. Way to go!

Global Nominee

Webb in Pieces

High-Level Project Summary

With the rise of space technology becoming apparent to society, the way we educate people about them must be improved as some aspects of the technology may be explained with jargon that some people may not understand . A solution to this problem are visual, interactive, learning tools; our idea combines both the interactive and entertainment anyone would understand while also including various unique learning mechanics throughout the game. Our development of this game had various challenges throughout its development but nonetheless produced a wonderful game fit for teaching people around the world about the wonders of the creation of the James Webb Space Telescope.

Link to Final Project

https://github.com/FunctionDotExe/NasaHAckathon

Link to Project "Demo"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9gLM-2FnI8

Detailed Project Description

What Does it Do?

Our project is a game that teaches people about the James Webb Space Telescope using explanations that adapt to age groups, experiential learning, and educates the player on how the functions of different components of the James Webb Telescope are crucial to the imaging/study of celestial objects.

By entering your age into the game, it will adapt its explanations to fit the age and average education. For example, if a player is under ten years-old, the game assigns simpler questions and decrease the amount of scientific jargon used in the descriptions. However, if the player is over thirteen years-old, the game assigns more difficult questions and assumes a higher understanding of scientific terms.

To show image processing and the importance of the JWST instruments; the player begins with a mystery image that they must uncover by building the JWST. The player will learn how the components of the telescope work by simulating the consequences of the missing instruments. As the player progresses, leveling up their character and collecting blueprints, components of the JWST can be crafted which slowly improve the clarity of the image.

To collect blueprints and other materials, the player must defeat the asteroid obstacles and fight enemies.

How Does It Work?

Our game works through the use of Unity and Visual Studio Code C# to help provide a graphical, interactive space game that is entertaining for people to play and learn at the same time.

What Benefits Does It Have?

There is a wide range of benefits proven by the use of this game but the main point is its ability to help teach anyone of all ages about the telescope, and have learning targeted for their age group.

The benefits to engaging educational applications allow people from young to old enjoy learning through building, age adaptability, and experiential learning.

What Do You Hope To Achieve?

We hope to break the barrier of astronomy by creating a game that adapts, simplifies, and teaches people about the James Webb Space Telescope without overwhelming them with technical jargon. We hope that people of all ages can learn about the James Webb Telescope.

Tools Used;

Tools used during the creation of this project may include, Unity, Visual Studio Code, and is programmed using C#.

Space Agency Data

Throughout the learning experience provided within this game, we have used NASA's information detailing the telescope to learn how the telescope's components worked in order to make our game as accurate as possible . As well, we did not want our information include technical words that someone may not know, therefore, we used the data understand the components well to be able to explain them simply.

https://webb.nasa.gov/

Using the 3d Modelled data of the JWST, we've also created our own models and designs of certain parts of the Webb Telescope which have been implemented into the game to provide an impactful learning experience for the user. As well, we used the NASA 3D model of the James Webb Space Telescope to create our assets, (e.g sprites, main menu, crafting components) . This data was used to recreate the NIRCam, MIRI, NIRISS, primary mirrors, and much more in our game.

https://data.nasa.gov/Management-Operations/NASA-3D-Models-James-Webb-Space-Telescope/kh2u-p8gq

Hackathon Journey

Our experience with Space Apps was very fun and we found that it was great to work next to mentors and other hackers. We learned lots about the mechanics of JWST as well as game design, code, and collaboration. What inspired our team to choose this challenge is our mutual interest in developing games and astronomy. As well, we saw the impact this game could have on interest in astronomy. This was an amazing opportunity to help us learn more about those topics. Our approach was to develop the project by planning and bouncing ideas between team members and dividing the work to complete it. We developed a prototype of a game that has an educational concept, fun design, and unique mechanics. Every challenge and setback our team faced, we worked on it together to solve it by talking to each other and find possible solutions.

We would like to thank the mentors that took time to educate others on their respective fields. Without them, our team would have had more difficultly overcoming setbacks and obstacles.