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Here's what happens when NASA hosts a pumpkin sculpture contest
While this may not be your usual Halloween fare, a parachute and air blower pumpkin are equivalent when engineers engage in Jet Propulsion Pumpkin Carving Contest. NASA Laboratory in Pasadena California.
Once a year, on Halloween, JPL developers stop to build robots that explore the solar system to create spectacular creations that have as much in common with conventional tanks as paper planes with NASA. The unofficial Pumpkin Carving Contest, now in its seventh year, gives engineers an opportunity to be creative and connect, said NASA Mechanical Engineer Mike Meacham, who co-directs the one hour contest this year.
"I do not think that even at the time, they appreciated how seriously our engineers would take it," he said of the first competition. In 2017, Meacham – who works at the entrance, descent and landing of the March 2020 rover – and her team won third place with a Frankenstein green gourd floating in the air, suspended by a mini parachute and a fan.
This is what happens when @NASA has a pumpkin sculpture contest: https: //t.co/cc39F8X36e #NASApumpkin ? pic.twitter.com/9TKRSuPuwS
– NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) October 26, 2018
A team that turned a pumpkin into a glittering UFO in the middle of the projection of a cow (miniature). Another team turned their pumpkin into a rotating carnival ride, while a third created a robotic arm that could turn on and off a light switch.
Presented together in a dark room, the creations glitter, stagger, shine and make noise in a way that defies the imagination. A panel of judges awards the first place to the pumpkin the same day. The price? The victory itself.
The rules are simple: no planning, carving or competition during working hours.
"They do everything at their own pace," said Meacham, who had been thinking about her ideas for six months. "They go home, use their own resources, plan and all we give them is a pumpkin."
Iona Brockie, rover engineer March 2020, said the competition gave him the opportunity to admire the talent of his colleagues. After two years in second place, his team took first place last year with a pirate ship that flew over Jupiter on a sea of dry ice. Inspired by NASA's future mission on Jupiter's Frozen Moon, Brockie and her teammates used their mechanical engineering know-how to plan every step of their effort, up to five minutes apart.
"Everyone is so excited about this contest, which has no other price than bragging," said Brockie, who also helped build the pumpkin cow removal. "It's fun to see everyone bring the same kind of crazy energy to turn flying projects into something as simple as a pumpkin carving contest."
This year's competition is taking place on October 29, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am Pacific Time, during the lunch break of the engineering section. The winners will be named in the afternoon.
The event will be covered live on NASA's JPL social network accounts. The photos and video will be posted to NASA's JPL Flickr account on the same day.
This article was originally published on nasa.gov. The content of the article has not been published.
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