The highlight of the week is a run through a hypobaric chamber that simulates atmospheric conditions at 25,000 feet. Students take off their oxygen masks for up to five minutes at the simulated altitude and make note of how they feel with hypoxia - or lower blood oxygen. The training is intended to help fliers recognize their symptoms should they experience a loss of cabin pressure aboard the KC-135. Each team flies their experiment on two consecutive days, with a different pair of students each day. NASA photographers make photos and video during each flight and a live video feed from the plane is shown on monitors in the Ellington hangar during most of the flight.
Many projects then share their data via the web for students and researchers to analyze.