Using materials such as an air conditioner, cooling pipes and a block of graphite, a team of students from the Thayer School of Engineering is working to design a dehumidifying system for future manned spacecrafts. The student-led initiative — known as the Microgravity University program and sponsored by NASA’s Glenn Research Center — will provide the group with the opportunity to fly with and test its project in an aircraft that simulates the reduced gravity of space, according to the program’s website.

The team received notification of its selection by NASA in early December, according to the Microgravity University’s website.

“[The program] is extraordinarily competitive and very prestigious,” Douglas Van Citters, an engineering professor and the group’s advisor, said. “This is the first team from my class that’s ever made it or even tried out.”