This episode of HIKI NŌ is hosted by Island School from Lihue, Kauai.

Top Story:
Kealakehe High School on Hawaii Island presents a story about students from their school and from Iolani School on Oahu who were selected to participate in a once-in-a-lifetime science project that will send NASA’s dust shield technology to the moon. These robotics students, called MoonRIDERS (Research Investigating Dust Expulsion & Removal Systems), will work with the Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems in hands-on experiments testing the capabilities of NASA’s EDS (Electrodynamic Dust Shield). Students will build a mock up lunar lander spacecraft, fabricate the actual flight frame for the mission, mount the EDS on it, install a camera and design a lunar re-duster, then test the entire system on the lower slopes of Mauna Kea to see how well it will remove dust off of the camera lens.

Also Featured:
Students at Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School on Kauai visit Hanapepe Nights, a popular art, music and food festival in Kauai’s biggest little town. Students from Kamehameha Schools Maui Middle tell the story of a husband and wife who left their careers as mechanical engineers to farm the very colorful, exotic dragon fruit on Maui. Students from McKinley High School on Oahu profile their school’s cross-country team captain, Hidemasa Vincent Mitsui, who was deemed ineligible to compete during his senior year because he had to repeat the 9th grade when he moved from Japan to Hawaii (OIA rules state that a 5th year student is ineligible to participate in high school sports). Even though he was not able to compete, Vincent inspired his teammates to do their very best and was eventually reinstated when his coach and athletic director appealed to the OIA.

Students at Iolani School on Oahu take us behind the scenes with the Iolani Hackers, a group of students and faculty members who create elaborate visual pranks meant to surprise and delight people on campus. Students at Saint Francis School on Oahu introduce us to Isabel Villanueva, the state air riflery champion who excels at the sport despite the fact that she lives with a rare medical condition – linear scleroderma – which causes her physical pain while participating in the sport. Students at Wheeler Middle School on Oahu show us how to stay safe on the internet by using proper social media etiquette and guidelines.

This program encores Saturday, May 2 at 12:30 pm and Sunday, May 3 at 3:00 pm. You can also view HIKI NŌ episodes on our website, www.pbshawaii.org/hikino.