LONDON, April 13 (Xinhua) -- A group of school children from Cornwall, one of Britain's best known surfing areas, have won a prize for an invention that could save the lives of surfers, it was announced Friday.
Ellie Jones, Jessica Knight, both 15, Summer Jeffery and Emily Haddrell, both 14, all from Truro, scooped a top prize in a competition organized by the British space agency.
Their "surf safe" invention features a wristband that uses satellite location data and communications services to identify the locations of swimmers and surfers in the sea.
The teens entered their invention in the SateLife Competition which supports the development of science, data handling and technological skills as part of the government's year of engineering.
Ellie Jones said: "As students living in Cornwall, the sea has always been important to us and from the very start we knew we wanted to do something involving the beach. It was such a surprise to find out we had won."
When combined with tidal and rip tide data, the wristband could provide real time tracking and identification of people approaching known danger areas, and provide coast guards or the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) with potentially life-saving information.
Jon Oxenham, RNLI's community safety manager, said: "It's great to see young people thinking about water safety and creating new ideas which could save lives at sea."
Government Science Minister Sam Gyimah said: "We want to encourage young people like those entering this competition to get involved in every part of our thriving space sector.
"The creative use of data from space can solve many challenges and help establish successful businesses. It's a vital part of the government's industrial strategy to back the entrepreneurs of tomorrow as we build an economy that's fit for the future."
Nine winning entries will now be able to pitch their ideas to a panel of business "dragons" from the space sector to determine if their inventions can be commercialized.
The nine also include Tek Kan Chung, 18, from the University of Cambridge, who developed satellite imagery for traffic management. The idea uses satellites to identify traffic areas of problems and re-route people. It would use real time data, and then use pace cars to control traffic and reduce phantom traffic jams.