IL HR0915

Congratulates Naperville North High School senior Alayna Nguyen for winning the 2020 NASA & Texas Instruments Codes Contest.

Alayna partnered with high school students from New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania to create the competition's first-ever multi-state team called the "Germaphobes."

The team designed a free-flying robot that uses ultraviolet light to sterilize the International Space Station, allowing astronauts to focus on experiments.

The Germaphobes' project received the most votes in the public voting round after more than 21,000 votes were cast in the final judging round.

Each grand champion receives a Texas Instruments graphing calculator and TI-Innovator Rover, plus a free trip to Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas to present their design to International Space Station Program Office personnel.