KIDS IN SPACE SHUTTLE SIMULATOR GIVES TEENS OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD EXPERIENCE.

Byline: Carol Rock Staff Writer

VALENCIA - Concentrating on controlling pitch, roll and altitude, Amee King, 14, carefully moved the joystick forward in an attempt to safely land the space shuttle Viking.

The computer screen suddenly went black in front of the Rancho Pico eighth-grader, signifying a crash landing. The space-suited girl sat back, took a deep breath and got ready to try again.

``Don't worry, nobody's figured out the brakes yet,'' assured the captain, Megan Smith, seated next to Amee in the stainless steel-fronted cockpit.

Students in Liz Virnelson's science class get a lot more than book learning when it comes to outer space. Volunteers - from parents to fellow teachers and the students themselves - built a complete shuttle simulator, moonscape and NASA command center in the back of her classroom, allowing students to experience firsthand the excitement and intensity of space exploration.

A giant white wall housing the shuttle cockpit, equipped with cameras and monitors, separates the participants from the rest of their classmates, who are doing astronomy-related math and science projects.

Mission control is a short distance from the capsule. Five students sit in front of a bank of computers with flashing lights, reading instructions over their headsets to the astronauts from scripts written by Virnelson.

``Just like Apollo,'' she said, leading a visitor through a corridor with glowing stars and constellations.

The capsule console, a metal facade bearing NASA stickers and logos of various shuttle missions along with gauges, indicator lights and computer screens, was built by parents Dan Brooks and Larry Smith. Parent Betsy Anderson, who works at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, donated stickers and enough samples of astronaut ice cream to give everyone a taste.

Every student filled out an application for the jobs they wanted, with astronaut applications requiring a bit more effort.

``They had to show me that they had the right stuff,'' Virnelson said. ``Out of 40 applications, I was only able to pick 12 students to be astronauts.'' Those students who didn't make the first cut were often given their second choices, which for some, turned out to be better.

``I really wanted to be a pilot,'' said Jack Turpin, 13, as he worked on an international space station design at his computer. ``But this is even more lifelike,'' he said, pointing to the virtual spaceship he was creating as it revealed layer upon layer of compartments and functions.

Erin McCarty, 14, was the medical officer for the mission, wearing a white lab coat and compiling data on the astronauts.

``I've always been very into space and wanted to learn about medicine,'' she said, readying a blood pressure cuff for a pre-landing check of the astronauts. ``Mrs. Virnelson makes everything so interesting, I think I learned more from this than anything else this year.''

In preparation for landing, Aubrie Pohl, 13, passed out notebooks pulled from a wall of plastic compartments in the cockpit. ``We're landing in 10 minutes,'' she warned the crew.

As she flipped switches and followed the detailed instructions, Smith talked with Paloma Battacar, 14, her counterpart at mission control.

``Thank you, see you on Earth,'' she said before switching off.

``There are so many kids at this school with ties to JPL and NASA,'' Virnelson said. ``The thought that my class might turn the kids on to careers because of the culmination for their astronomy section is amazing. It can help them in the future, and it's so worth it when you see them smile after they figure something out.''

Carol Rock, [phone]

carol.rock(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Astronauts, from left, Aubrie Pohl, 13, Megan Smith, 13, and Amee King, 14, pilot the shuttle toward Earth in a simulation for their science class as Rancho Pico Junior High School.

(2 -- color) Classroom astronaut helmets are lined up for use in the simulations in Liz Virnelson's science class.

(3) Laura Ruppert talks to astronauts from mission control, which is a short distance from the capsule.

David Crane/Staff Photographer