How do you test a new method for CPR in space without actually going into space? You take flight in a microgravity plane, obviously. For the last 20 years, NASA's Reduced Gravity Office has opened up its zero-g planes to college students from around the country, who get the once in a lifetime opportunity to test physical experiments in a weightless environment. Yes, they get to play with fire in zero g. Lucky...

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This year Zach Barbeau, an engineering student from Oklahoma State University, reached out and asked if I'd like to ride along with his team. I couldn't have said yes fast enough. And it's a good thing I did, because it's possible that was the last hurrah for this beautiful and unique science program.

NASA'S Reduced Gravity Education Flight Program was founded in 1995, and every year since then every year it's given students (and teachers) a chance to propose, design, build, test, and fly a microgravity experiment on a "Weightless Wonder" zero-G plane. This is how it earned the moniker Microgravity University. This year, the guidelines stipulated that the experiments focus on improving human spaceflight.

Studentsmostly engineering students, but there are some exceptionsfrom universities all over the country form teams of six (five fliers plus one alternate) and submit project proposals to the space agency. We're talking about solving major problems. Here's are some of this year's projects.

The team wanted to see if creating an electric field would keep dust particles off of a surface in reduced gravity. That can't be tested in Earth's gravity, so this was the only platform (short of going into low-Earth orbit) on which they could test this theory.

One team's experiment, ready to be bolted to the Weightless Wonder

When the teams finally arrive at NASA for flight week, they have to defend their projects to upwards of 20 individual engineers and scientists. Some experiments must be rebuilt several times before they're approved. Nobody sleeps very much.

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Microgravity University: Testing the Future of Spaceflight in Zero G