Meet the Indian-origin seventh-grader who boosted atmospheric water output by 117%

Ankith BurkiPhoto: Society for Science For Ankith Burki, the global water crisis was not an abstract classroom topic but a challenge worth trying to solve. The seventh-grader from BASIS Independent Silicon Valley in San Jose designed an atmospheric water generator that pulls moisture from humid air, then tested whether sound could make it more effective. His results were striking: low-frequency sine waves increased the device’s water collection by 117 percent. The project earned Ankith a place among 30 national finalists in the 2026 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge, the United States’ premier STEM competition for middle-school students, according to the Society for Science. Read on to know more about his project here:A question shaped by water scarcityAnkith’s project began with a sobering reality. More than 4 billion people do not have sufficient access to fresh water, and climate change is expected to make water stress more severe in many regions. Atmospheric water generators offer one possible solution because they can extract drinkable water directly from humid air, reducing dependence on conventional water sources.But there is a significant limitation. Many...