STEPL (Space Technology and Education Pvt. Ltd.) conducted an experiment for school children as part of the Winter Solstice Day celebrations at Jantar Mantar on 22nd Dec by SPACE.
The competition titled 'Scientist of the Day' involved measuring the shadow of a long stick over a period of time and using the shortest shadow to find the Circumference of the Earth. This uses the concept that the sun rays shine directly overhead on the Tropic of Capricorn (the latitude line at 23.5° south, passing through Brazil, South Africa, and Australia) on the day of Winter Solstice. Younger students participated in a competition "Measuring the Sun Angle" which was a smaller part of the original one.
About 150 students from 21 schools from Delhi NCR participated in this competition, including schools such as The Airforce School, Subroto Park; DPS Sonepat; Ryan International School, Rohini; Step by Step, Noida; Apeejay School, Saket, etc. The students sat in groups amidst the green lawns surrounded by the ancient monuments and measured away for a couple of hours. It was a great experience for the teachers and students to be involved in such a project.
All the groups did a great job and attended to the measurements with attention and diligence. I am proud to announce the winners of these two competitions:
In Senior Section Ryan International School, Vasant Kunj won the first prize where as team 8 and team 7 from Ryan International School, Rohini got second and third prize respectively.
In Junior Section team 5 from The Air Force School, Subrato Park won the first prize where as team 15 and team 16 from Step By Step Greater Noida stood second and third prize respectively.
