Science Fair takes on deer migration

Have you ever wondered why some of the mule deer in Sisters leave for migration and others stay and endure the snow and bitter winter here? Where do the migrating deer go for their winter migration? Who tracks these migrating/non-migrating deer?

If those questions and others often spring to mind as you drive through town and wait at a crosswalk for the deer to cross, then come to the Sisters Science Fair this Saturday, March 16, from noon to 4 p.m. at Sisters High School.

Protect Animal Migration (PAM) will have an exhibit about the mule deer migration in Sisters Country, and they will be showing movies every half hour throughout the day. PAM is working on the urgent need for habitat connectivity and for barrier-free migration for mule deer and elk. Frequent collisions with these animals cost thousands of dollars and have severe consequences for the wildlife and for the Central Oregon economy.

Space travel is a topic in the news these days given the successes of SpaceX's Dragon (with Ripley, the dummy astronaut) and Boeing's upcoming Crew Space Transportation (CST-100) Starliner test. The Sisters Science Fair is amply representing cosmic science with demonstrations, observations and exhibits.

The Rocket Club will offer an opportunity for students to build and launch rockets if weather permits. ISTAR, a company that launches stratospheric balloons for commercial use, will be on hand along with Steve Peterzen from ISTAR and Sisters High School students. This group will explain the concept, show their payloads, and launch balloons from the Sisters High School field.

OMSI will have their new sophisticated planetarium to help us all learn to search for and name those elusive stars in our heavens.

For a taste of aviation closer to home, the Radio-Controlled Airplane Club will demonstrate flight using a hand-held transmitter and a lot of skill to fly around our area. Of course, there's always the Paper Airplane Challenge, where you can compare your aviation design talents with other competitors for the right to hold the overall paper airplane winner of flight and distance.

SciArt is a popular segment of the Sisters Science Fair that pulls together the often-overlooked parallel between art and science. SciArt challenges students, from elementary to high school, to use their imaginations and "find the art in science." These creations are on display at the fair so plan plenty of time to see each one, check out the winners, and pick your own favorites.

Again this year, the Sisters High School gym will erupt with noise from an exuberant audience when they cheer on the teams involved in the Design, Construct and Compete (DCC) Contest.

Elementary students will captivate the crowd first as each student signed up for the competition races their own specially designed and decorated balloon car in the gym starting about 2:30 p.m. Following that race, the middle school and high school students compete as individuals or teams in the tennis Ball Launch Contest. As teams progress after each round, the complexity and difficulty of the course increases until only one person or team is left to claim the first-place-winner prize. The audience participates, too, with their encouraging cheers and the escalating sound of their shouts.

The Sisters Science Fair offers families the opportunity to explore science together, to ask questions, and learn about our natural environment. Everyone is empowered to inquire and experiment at the Science Fair. The event is free and open to everyone. For more information, visit the Sisters Science Club website at www.sistersscienceclub.org.