By HAROLD GWIN

By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
HUBBARD --Two Trumbull County young men were among a group of just 16 4-H youths from across the country selected to attend a special space camp at the U.S. Space & amp; Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala.
"It was pretty cool," said Sean Offerdahl of Hubbard.
Would they go again?
"Oh, in a heartbeat," said Nate Jackson of Warren.
The five-day space camp was a joint 4-H/NASA pilot program largely underwritten by National Aeronautics and Space Administration in support of advanced life support systems education, including space agriculture and other technologies related to agriculture and living in space.
The "4-H Missions in Space: Moon, Mars, Earth -- Agriculture and Challenging Environments" camp ended Sept. 16.
Sean said participants did space simulations, and included a space shuttle mission and a second in mission control. They also did what was called an "E-mission," which divided them into teams and put them in the year 2035.
About the mission
The mission involved three lunar bases being threatened by a comet. The teams had to project where the comet would hit and determine if the bases were in danger, Sean said.
Nate said they also did a lot of research on actual past space missions, particularly the Apollo series, and focused on agricultural issues.
The group visited a farm that uses precision agricultural Global Positioning System computers in its tractors so operators can map out their farms and determine what fields need fertilizer, moisture or pesticides and what fields have good or bad crops.
The campers got a chance to try their hand at the GPS system to check the farm's fields.
"The camp went great," said Al Whitaker, Space Camp media relations director. "We hope to bring more kids in next year."
The pilot program, which incorporates other sciences with space travel, has been in development for a couple of years, he said. For now, it will remain a once-a-year event, although that could change with demand, Whitaker said.
Camp's goal
One of the space camp's main goals is to interest kids in high-tech careers, not necessarily space travel, Whitaker said.
"I thought it would be a great opportunity to go," Nate said, adding that he wasn't disappointed and he would recommend the camp to others.
"It was just fun meeting kids from other states that went there," Sean said, adding that his real interest in the camp wasn't so much agriculture as it was space.
Sean, 15, is the son of Greg and Lynne Almasy and is a freshman at Hubbard High School.
His family owns Mustard Seed Farms on Bell-Wick Road, and he raises goats and rabbits as part of his 4-H work with the Brookfield 4-H Friends club.
Although he's interested in space, being an astronaut isn't in his plans. He's looking at a career in history or zoology, he said.
Nate, 14, son of Ryan and Gayle Jackson of Parkman Road, is in the eighth grade in the Southington School District.
He also raises goats to show in 4-H and other competitions and is a member of the East Ohio 4-H Group.
Neither agriculture nor space are in his career plans.
Nate, who plays both the guitar and saxophone, said he wants to attend Youngstown State University and major in music.
The boys brought back a number of souvenirs, including flight suits with their own name tags and "quite a lot of memories," Nate said.
gwin@vindy.com