The Willow High School

Juliana Manalla ('24) was named one of four finalists nationwide in the NASA Hunch Design and Prototyping Lunar Art challenge. Elizabeth Hennessey ('24) also attended and was named a semi-finalist. The Hunch program tasks students with developing innovative solutions to problems posed by life in space. Many of the projects are items personally requested by the International Space Station Crew to help ease living conditions while in space. The Lunar Art challenge was to create an enriching art experience for astronauts without the use of any art supplies. Juliana's project was Astro Food Paints. Her solution harnesses the natural pigments found in dried astronaut food to create watercolor paints that can be used in a low-gravity environment to inspire NASA astronauts to create art on the moon. There is no first, second or third places in the Hunch challenge, only finalists. She traveled to Space Center Houston this month to present her project to NASA astronauts and engineers. The project started as an assignment in Mr. Owen's Level IV Engineering class.