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'''Space Camp''' is an educational [[summer camp|camp]] in [[Huntsville, Alabama]], on the grounds of the [[U.S. Space & Rocket Center]] (USSRC) museum near [[NASA]]'s [[Marshall Space Flight Center]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = Space Camp|url = http://www.spacecamp.com/space|website = www.spacecamp.com|access-date = 2015-11-16}}</ref> It provides residential and educational programs for children and adults on topics such as [[space exploration]], [[aviation]], and [[robotics]]. Run by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, more than 900,000 campers have attended since its inception in 1982, including several NASA and [[European Space Agency|ESA]] astronauts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=U.S. Space & Rocket Center {{!}} U.S. Space & Rocket Center |url=https://www.rocketcenter.com/aboutus |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=www.rocketcenter.com}}</ref>
'''Space Camp''' is an educational [[summer camp|camp]] in [[Huntsville, Alabama]], on the grounds of the [[U.S. Space & Rocket Center]] (USSRC) museum near [[NASA]]'s [[Marshall Space Flight Center]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = Space Camp|url = http://www.spacecamp.com/space|website = www.spacecamp.com|access-date = 2015-11-16}}</ref> It provides educational programs for children and adults on topics such as [[space exploration]], [[aviation]], and [[robotics]]. It is run by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission.<ref>{{Cite web |title=U.S. Space & Rocket Center {{!}} U.S. Space & Rocket Center |url=https://www.rocketcenter.com/aboutus |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=www.rocketcenter.com}}</ref>


== History ==
== History ==
Line 55: Line 55:


=== U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Foundation ===
=== U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Foundation ===
The U.S. Space & Rocket Center and the camp in [[Huntsville, Alabama|Huntsville]] are operated by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, a state agency whose members are appointed by the [[Governor of Alabama]].
The U.S. Space & Rocket Center and the camp in [[Huntsville, Alabama|Huntsville]] are operated by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, a state agency whose members are appointed by the Governor of Alabama. The U.S. Space & Rocket Center Foundation is a non-profit, separate entity and its board members are not appointed by the governor. It is responsible for scholarship, fund-raising, and the licensing of camps outside the United States.


== Programs ==
The U.S. Space & Rocket Center Foundation is a non-profit, separate entity and its board members are not appointed by the governor. It is responsible for [[scholarship]], fund-raising, and the licensing of camps outside the United States. There are a number of internationally licensed Space Camps, including [[Space Camp Turkey]], [[Cosmodome|Space Camp Canada]] ({{Lang-fr|Camp Spatial}}), and Space Camp Belgium.
The center offers several programs. Space Camp was the first of the camp programs offered, and is used also as the umbrella organization name.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024}}

⚫
* Space Camp is a six-day program offered for children between 9 and 11 years old. Children can choose from one of three "tracks" of activities and study: space, aviation, and robotics.

⚫
[[Image:SpaceShuttleAtSpaceCamp.jpg|right|187x187px|thumb|The [[Space Shuttle Pathfinder|Space Shuttle ''Pathfinder'']] is a [[Space Shuttle]] simulator based at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center]]

⚫
* Space Academy is intended for ages 12–14 and is also offered in six-day sessions.

⚫
* Advanced Space Academy is designed for 15 to 18-year-olds. The program was originally known as Space Academy Level II and was started in the Fall of 1987.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024}} In 1987, the Space Academy Level II program was college accredited (1 hour) through the University of Alabama Huntsville. It also offered programs for adults as the first class to go through Level II were adults.
* The Family Camp<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.spacecamp.com/family|title=Family Programs|website=Space Camp|access-date=2017-09-16}}</ref> program allows parents or guardians to attend Space Camp with their child aged 7–12 years. The program is run throughout the year, lasts three to four days, and includes activities in which the adult and child work together. Family Camp also has an Aviation Challenge option, designed for children and their accompanying adults, offered during the summer months.

* Advanced Space Academy Elite is offered to graduates of the Advanced Space Academy program and has several exclusive features, such as [[scuba diving]].

⚫
Additionally, Space Camp has previously offered a twelve-day Advanced Space Academy program that included features such as multiple missions, scuba diving, use of some of the Aviation Challenge facilities, and a twenty-four-hour extended duration mission.

⚫
=== Other programs ===
⚫
Other programs include corporate programs, programs for adults and educators, educational field-trips for school groups, and the X-Camp outdoor leadership camp. There were also special alumni sessions during the summer of the 25th anniversary.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024}}

⚫
Occasionally themed camps have been offered, usually in conjunction with museum exhibits. During the summer of 2010, a Jedi Experience camp was offered in connection with the traveling museum exhibit [[Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination|''Star Wars'': Where Science Meets Imagination]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination (Press Materials)|url=http://www.spacecamp.com/news/node/1902|access-date=23 November 2010|date=28 May 2010}}</ref>

⚫
[[File:Aviation Challenge 2011 web logo.png|thumb|right|alt="The Triangular Aviation Challenge logo shows the silhouette of a fighter plane pointing up and the words Aviation Challenge beneath."|Aviation Challenge logo]]

⚫
=== Aviation Challenge ===
⚫
The Aviation Challenge (AC) is a set of aviation-oriented programs at the camp, consisting of three main programs for children from ages 9–18. As aviation-oriented camps, the fundamental teaching aids are computer-based flight simulators, which are intended to train attendees to fly, act, and think like fighter pilots of the [[U.S. Air Force]], [[United States Navy|Navy]] or [[United States Marine Corps|Marine Corps]].

⚫
== Facilities ==

⚫
===Simulators ===
⚫
There are several simulators at Space Camp, such as:

⚫
*The [[Multi-Axis Trainer]] (MAT) simulates [[disorientation]], similar to the Multiple Axis Space Test Inertia Facility (MASTIF) developed for [[Project Mercury]]
⚫
*The 1/6 Chair simulates walking on the [[Moon]]
⚫
*The 5DF Chair simulates the friction-less environment of [[outer space]] in five [[Degrees of freedom (mechanics)|degrees of freedom]]
⚫
*The [[Manned Maneuvering Unit]] (MMU) simulates working untethered in a friction-less environment, such as during [[extravehicular activity]] (also known as an EVA or spacewalk).

⚫
Space Camp additionally uses rides or attractions that are on site at the USSRC as instructional tools. The [[Space Shot (ride)|Space Shot]] simulates [[rocket launch|liftoff]], and the [[Gravitron|G-Force Accelerator]] simulates the [[G-force]]s put on [[astronaut]]s while re-entering the Earth's atmosphere or during launch.

⚫
The Intuitive Planetarium provides a venue for presenting space and science-oriented shows produced through a Digistar 7 system and 5 Christie laser projectors.<ref name="Lyons">{{Cite web |last=Lyons |first=Wes |date=2019-02-27 |title=Intuitive Planetarium at U.S. Space & Rocket Center Opens Thursday |url=https://sprocketeers.org/2019/02/intuitive-planetarium/ |access-date=2021-08-13 |website=Sprocketeers |language=en}}</ref> The planetarium is part of the center's museum complex.<ref name="Intuitive">{{Cite web |date=2019-01-14 |title=Intuitive Planetarium |url=https://www.rocketcenter.com/intuitiveplanetarium |access-date=2021-08-13 |website=U.S. Space & Rocket Center |language=en}}</ref> In February 2019, the Intuitive Planetarium replaced the Spacedome [[IMAX]] theater, which had operated at the Center since 1982.<ref name="Lyons" />

⚫
=== Accommodation ===
⚫
[[Image:The SpaceCamp habitat.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Space Camp Habitat 1 facility]]
⚫
If a Space Camp program extends beyond a single day, participants are accommodated at either Habitat 1 or Habitat 2. These habitats are facilities that house both the trainers and trainees. These are mainly used by the Space Academy campers.

Aviation Challenge trainees stay in Habitat 3 where they are required to maintain military standards to their bays and racks.

Both habitats are segregated between male and female campers, usually being the males on the first floor and the females being on the second.

== Other camps ==
There are a number of internationally licensed Space Camps, including [[Space Camp Turkey]], [[Cosmodome|Space Camp Canada]] ({{Lang-fr|Camp Spatial}}), and Space Camp Belgium. There have been a few other space camps in the United States in the past, but they have since been closed.


=== Space Camp Florida ===
=== Space Camp Florida ===
Space Camp Florida was established in 1988 and shared facilities with the [[Astronaut Hall of Fame]] in [[Titusville, Florida|Titusville]], [[Florida]], both of which were operated by the now-defunct U.S. Space Camp Foundation. The Space Camp facility in Florida closed in 2002 due to low attendance, leading to financial difficulties. About 50,000 students attended the camp during its run, but in its final year, as few as 14 participants filled 276 slots.<ref>{{cite news|title=Titusville, Fla., Space Camp's Mission Is to Remain Open.|date=14 September 2002|newspaper=Orlando Sentinel | first=Laurin | last=Sellers }}</ref> The Astronaut Hall of Fame was sold to the [[Delaware North]] corporation and remained open until 2015 as an added attraction to the [[Kennedy Space Center]] Visitor Complex, with several simulators previously used by the camp available to all visitors.<ref>{{cite news |date=November 10, 2002 |title=Space Camp Will Keep Simulators, New Owner Says |newspaper=[[Miami Herald]]}}</ref> {{As of|2020}}, the building was being used by [[Lockheed Martin]] to support work on the NASA [[Orion (spacecraft)|Orion]] crew capsule.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.floridatoday.com/story/tech/science/space/2020/07/17/lockheed-martin-lease-former-ksc-building-nasa-orion-spacecraft-titusville/5435874002/ | title=Lockheed Martin will lease former Astronaut Hall of Fame for NASA's Orion spacecraft | publisher=Florida Today | first=Emre | last=Kelly | date=2020-07-17 | access-date=2020-09-15}}</ref>
Space Camp Florida was established in 1988 and shared facilities with the [[Astronaut Hall of Fame]] in [[Titusville, Florida|Titusville]], [[Florida]], both of which were operated by the now-defunct U.S. Space Camp Foundation. The Space Camp facility in Florida closed in 2002 due to low attendance, which led to financial difficulties. About 50,000 students attended the camp during its run, but in its final year, as few as 14 participants filled 276 slots.<ref>{{cite news |last=Sellers |first=Laurin |date=14 September 2002 |title=Titusville, Fla., Space Camp's Mission Is to Remain Open. |newspaper=Orlando Sentinel}}</ref> The Astronaut Hall of Fame was sold to the [[Delaware North]] corporation and remained open until 2015 as an added attraction to the [[Kennedy Space Center]] Visitor Complex, with several simulators previously used by the camp available to all visitors.<ref>{{cite news |date=November 10, 2002 |title=Space Camp Will Keep Simulators, New Owner Says |newspaper=[[Miami Herald]]}}</ref> {{As of|2020}}, the building was being used by [[Lockheed Martin]] to support work on the NASA [[Orion (spacecraft)|Orion]] crew capsule.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kelly |first=Emre |date=2020-07-17 |title=Lockheed Martin will lease former Astronaut Hall of Fame for NASA's Orion spacecraft |url=https://www.floridatoday.com/story/tech/science/space/2020/07/17/lockheed-martin-lease-former-ksc-building-nasa-orion-spacecraft-titusville/5435874002/ |access-date=2020-09-15 |publisher=Florida Today}}</ref>


=== Space Camp California ===
=== Space Camp California ===
Space Camp California was operated by the now-defunct U.S. Space Camp Foundation at [[Mountain View, California]] from 1996 to 2002, when it closed due to financial difficulties.<ref name="Merc">{{cite news|url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8695599_ITM|title=Space Camp California Closes for Lack of Funds|last=Kwan|first=Joshua L. |date=8 January 2002|newspaper=San Jose Mercury News |url-access=subscription }}</ref>
Space Camp California was operated by the now-defunct U.S. Space Camp Foundation at [[Mountain View, California]] from 1996 to 2002, when it closed due to financial difficulties.<ref name="Merc">{{cite news |last=Kwan |first=Joshua L. |date=8 January 2002 |title=Space Camp California Closes for Lack of Funds |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8695599_ITM |url-access=subscription |newspaper=San Jose Mercury News}}</ref>


=== Space Camp Hall of Fame ===
=== Space Camp Hall of Fame ===
The Space Camp Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 2007 during the 25th-anniversary celebrations. As per the camp's [http://spacecamphalloffame.com/about-hof/ website], the hall was established to honor graduates and former employees, praising their contributions and personal time spent at the place.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About the Hall of Fame {{!}} Space Camp Hall of Fame |url=http://spacecamphalloffame.com/about-hof/ |access-date=2024-05-12 |language=en-US}}</ref>
The Space Camp Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 2007 during the 25th-anniversary celebrations. The Hall was established to honor alumni and former employees by recognizing their contributions and personal time spent at the Space Camp.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About the Hall of Fame {{!}} Space Camp Hall of Fame |url=http://spacecamphalloffame.com/about-hof/ |access-date=2024-05-12 |language=en-US}}</ref>


{| class="wikitable sortable"
{| class="wikitable sortable"
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| {{sortname|Penny J.|Pettigrew|nolink=1}}|| 2007
| {{sortname|Penny J.|Pettigrew|nolink=1}}|| 2007
|-
|-
| {{sortname|Oscar|Holderer}}<ref name="hof08">{{cite web | url=http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/1216545331183340.xml&coll=1 | title=Hall of Fame Inductees | publisher=al.com | date=July 20, 2008 | access-date=March 29, 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080804055644/http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?%2Fbase%2Fnews%2F1216545331183340.xml&coll=1 | archive-date=August 4, 2008 |url-status = dead| df=mdy-all }}</ref> || 2008
| {{sortname|Oscar|Holderer}}<ref name="hof08">{{cite web |date=July 20, 2008 |title=Hall of Fame Inductees |url=http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/1216545331183340.xml&coll=1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080804055644/http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?%2Fbase%2Fnews%2F1216545331183340.xml&coll=1 |archive-date=August 4, 2008 |access-date=March 29, 2013 |publisher=al.com |df=mdy-all}}</ref> || 2008
|-
|-
| {{sortname|Marlenn|Maicki|nolink=1}}<ref name="hof08" /> || 2008
| {{sortname|Marlenn|Maicki|nolink=1}}<ref name="hof08" /> || 2008
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| {{sortname|Josh|Whitfield|nolink=1}}<ref name="hof08" /> || 2008
| {{sortname|Josh|Whitfield|nolink=1}}<ref name="hof08" /> || 2008
|-
|-
| {{sortname|Jim|Allan|nolink=1}}<ref name="AL.com HoF Article">{{cite news|last=Clines|first=Keith|title=Space Camp adds 3 to its hall of fame|url=http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/local.ssf?/base/news/1247390184316850.xml&coll=1|access-date=6 September 2010|newspaper=Huntsville Times|date=12 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609173105/http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/local.ssf?%2Fbase%2Fnews%2F1247390184316850.xml&coll=1|archive-date=9 June 2011|url-status = dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> || 2009
| {{sortname|Jim|Allan|nolink=1}}<ref name="AL.com HoF Article">{{cite news |last=Clines |first=Keith |date=12 July 2009 |title=Space Camp adds 3 to its hall of fame |url=http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/local.ssf?/base/news/1247390184316850.xml&coll=1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609173105/http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/local.ssf?%2Fbase%2Fnews%2F1247390184316850.xml&coll=1 |archive-date=9 June 2011 |access-date=6 September 2010 |newspaper=Huntsville Times |df=dmy-all}}</ref> || 2009
|-
|-
| {{sortname|Jerry|Gleason|nolink=1}}<ref name="AL.com HoF Article" /> || 2009
| {{sortname|Jerry|Gleason|nolink=1}}<ref name="AL.com HoF Article" /> || 2009
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| {{sortname|Robert|Pearlman}}<ref name="AL.com HoF Article" /> || 2009
| {{sortname|Robert|Pearlman}}<ref name="AL.com HoF Article" /> || 2009
|-
|-
| {{sortname|Francis|French}} || 2010
| {{sortname|Francis|French|dab=author}} || 2010
|-
|-
| {{sortname|J. David|Hnyda|nolink=1}}|| 2010
| {{sortname|J. David|Hnyda|nolink=1}}|| 2010
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|}
|}


== Programs ==
== See also ==
* [[Space Camp Turkey]]
⚫
Space Camp is a six-day program offered for children between 9 and 11 years old. The curriculum is designed to balance education and entertainment. Children enrolling in Space Camp can choose from one of three "tracks" of activities and study: space, aviation, and robotics. Space Camp was the first of the camp programs offered, and is used as the umbrella organization name.
* [[Space Camp Spain]]

* [[European Space Camp]]
⚫
[[Image:SpaceShuttleAtSpaceCamp.jpg|right|187x187px|thumb|The [[Space Shuttle Pathfinder|Space Shuttle ''Pathfinder'']] is a [[Space Shuttle]] simulator based at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center]]
⚫
Space Academy is a program intended for ages 12–14, offered in six-day sessions.

⚫
Advanced Space Academy is designed for 15 to 18-year-olds. The program was originally known as Space Academy Level II and was started in the Fall of 1987. In 1987 the Space Academy Level II program was college accredited (1 hour) through the University of Alabama Huntsville. It also offered programs for adults as the first class to go through Level II were adults. The Family Camp<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.spacecamp.com/family|title=Family Programs|website=Space Camp|access-date=2017-09-16}}</ref> program allows parents or guardians to attend Space Camp with their child aged 7–12 years. The program is run throughout the year, lasts three to four days, and includes activities in which the adult and child work together. Family Camp also has an Aviation Challenge option, designed for children and their accompanying adults, offered during the summer months.

⚫
Advanced Space Academy Elite is offered to graduates of the Advanced Space Academy program and has several exclusive features, such as [[scuba diving]]. Additionally, Space Camp has previously offered a twelve-day Advanced Space Academy program that includes features such as multiple missions, scuba diving, use of some of the [[Aviation Challenge]] facilities, and a twenty-four-hour extended duration mission.
⚫
=== Other programs ===
⚫
Other programs include corporate programs, programs for adults and educators, educational field-trips for school groups, and the X-Camp outdoor leadership camp. There were also special alumni sessions during the summer of the 25th anniversary.

⚫
Occasionally themed camps have been offered, usually in conjunction with museum exhibits. During the summer of 2010, a Jedi Experience camp was offered in connection with the traveling museum exhibit [[Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination|''Star Wars'': Where Science Meets Imagination]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination (Press Materials)|url=http://www.spacecamp.com/news/node/1902|access-date=23 November 2010|date=28 May 2010}}</ref>

⚫
[[File:Aviation Challenge 2011 web logo.png|thumb|right|alt="The Triangular Aviation Challenge logo shows the silhouette of a fighter plane pointing up and the words Aviation Challenge beneath."|Aviation Challenge logo]]

⚫
=== Aviation Challenge ===
⚫
The Aviation Challenge (AC) is a set of aviation-oriented programs at the camp, consisting of three main programs for children from ages 9–18. As aviation-oriented camps, the fundamental teaching aids are computer-based flight simulators, which are intended to train attendees to fly, act, and think like [[fighter pilot]]s of the [[U.S. Air Force]], [[United States Navy|Navy]] or [[United States Marine Corps|Marine Corps]].

⚫
== Facilities ==

⚫
===Simulators ===
⚫
There are several simulators at Space Camp, such as:

⚫
*The [[Multi-Axis Trainer]] (MAT) simulates [[disorientation]], similar to the Multiple Axis Space Test Inertia Facility (MASTIF) developed for [[Project Mercury]]
⚫
*The 1/6 Chair simulates walking on the [[Moon]]
⚫
*The 5DF Chair simulates the frictionless environment of [[outer space]] in five [[Degrees of freedom (mechanics)|degrees of freedom]]
⚫
*The [[Manned Maneuvering Unit]] (MMU) simulates working untethered in a frictionless environment, such as during [[extravehicular activity]] (also known as an EVA or spacewalk).

⚫
Space Camp additionally uses rides or attractions that are on site at the USSRC as instructional tools. The [[Space Shot (ride)|Space Shot]] simulates [[rocket launch|liftoff]], and the [[Gravitron|G-Force Accelerator]] simulates the [[G-force]]s put on [[astronaut]]s while re-entering the Earth's atmosphere or during launch.

⚫
The Intuitive Planetarium provides a venue for presenting space and science-oriented shows produced through a Digistar 7 system and 5 Christie laser projectors.<ref name="Lyons">{{Cite web |last=Lyons |first=Wes |date=2019-02-27 |title=Intuitive Planetarium at U.S. Space & Rocket Center Opens Thursday |url=https://sprocketeers.org/2019/02/intuitive-planetarium/ |access-date=2021-08-13 |website=Sprocketeers |language=en}}</ref> The planetarium is part of the center's museum complex.<ref name="Intuitive">{{Cite web |date=2019-01-14 |title=Intuitive Planetarium |url=https://www.rocketcenter.com/intuitiveplanetarium |access-date=2021-08-13 |website=U.S. Space & Rocket Center |language=en}}</ref> In February 2019, the Intuitive Planetarium replaced the Spacedome [[IMAX]] theater, which had operated at the Center since 1982.<ref name="Lyons" />

⚫
=== Accommodation ===
⚫
[[Image:The SpaceCamp habitat.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Space Camp Habitat 1 facility]]
⚫
If a Space Camp program extends beyond a single day, participants are accommodated at either Habitat 1 or Habitat 2. These habitats are facilities that house both the trainers and trainees. These are mainly used by the Space Academy campers.

Aviation Challenge trainees stay in Habitat 3 where they are required to maintain military standards to their bays and racks. There are two floors to Habitat 3. Male trainees occupy half of the ground floor and all of the second floor. Female trainees stay on the other half of the first floor. The bays are named after famous aircraft carriers. The camp has a cafeteria where campers receive meals.


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 05:59, 19 August 2024

Space Camp
Habitat One (left) and Habitat Two (right) at Space Camp. Habitats house campers staying for multiple days. Campers enter through the red gate.
Space Camp is located in the United States
Space Camp
Space Camp
LocationHuntsville, Alabama, U.S.
Coordinates34°42′41″N 86°39′15″W / 34.71139°N 86.65417°W / 34.71139; -86.65417
Operated byU.S. Space & Rocket Center
Established1982 (1982)
Websitehttps://www.spacecamp.com/

Space Camp is an educational camp in Huntsville, Alabama, on the grounds of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center (USSRC) museum near NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.[1] It provides educational programs for children and adults on topics such as space exploration, aviation, and robotics. It is run by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission.[2]

History

Space Camp was founded in 1982 by USSRC Executive Director Edward O. Buckbee as an educational camp to promote mathematics and science to children using the U.S. space program as a basis. The idea for the camp was proposed by Wernher von Braun in 1977 while touring the USSRC, where he noticed a group of students taking notes on what they were learning.[3][4]

U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Foundation

The U.S. Space & Rocket Center and the camp in Huntsville are operated by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, a state agency whose members are appointed by the Governor of Alabama. The U.S. Space & Rocket Center Foundation is a non-profit, separate entity and its board members are not appointed by the governor. It is responsible for scholarship, fund-raising, and the licensing of camps outside the United States.

Programs

The center offers several programs. Space Camp was the first of the camp programs offered, and is used also as the umbrella organization name.[citation needed]

  • Space Camp is a six-day program offered for children between 9 and 11 years old. Children can choose from one of three "tracks" of activities and study: space, aviation, and robotics.
The Space Shuttle Pathfinder is a Space Shuttle simulator based at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center
  • Space Academy is intended for ages 12–14 and is also offered in six-day sessions.
  • Advanced Space Academy is designed for 15 to 18-year-olds. The program was originally known as Space Academy Level II and was started in the Fall of 1987.[citation needed] In 1987, the Space Academy Level II program was college accredited (1 hour) through the University of Alabama Huntsville. It also offered programs for adults as the first class to go through Level II were adults.
  • The Family Camp[5] program allows parents or guardians to attend Space Camp with their child aged 7–12 years. The program is run throughout the year, lasts three to four days, and includes activities in which the adult and child work together. Family Camp also has an Aviation Challenge option, designed for children and their accompanying adults, offered during the summer months.
  • Advanced Space Academy Elite is offered to graduates of the Advanced Space Academy program and has several exclusive features, such as scuba diving.

Additionally, Space Camp has previously offered a twelve-day Advanced Space Academy program that included features such as multiple missions, scuba diving, use of some of the Aviation Challenge facilities, and a twenty-four-hour extended duration mission.

Other programs

Other programs include corporate programs, programs for adults and educators, educational field-trips for school groups, and the X-Camp outdoor leadership camp. There were also special alumni sessions during the summer of the 25th anniversary.[citation needed]

Occasionally themed camps have been offered, usually in conjunction with museum exhibits. During the summer of 2010, a Jedi Experience camp was offered in connection with the traveling museum exhibit Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination.[6]

"The Triangular Aviation Challenge logo shows the silhouette of a fighter plane pointing up and the words Aviation Challenge beneath."
Aviation Challenge logo

Aviation Challenge

The Aviation Challenge (AC) is a set of aviation-oriented programs at the camp, consisting of three main programs for children from ages 9–18. As aviation-oriented camps, the fundamental teaching aids are computer-based flight simulators, which are intended to train attendees to fly, act, and think like fighter pilots of the U.S. Air Force, Navy or Marine Corps.

Facilities

Simulators

There are several simulators at Space Camp, such as:

Space Camp additionally uses rides or attractions that are on site at the USSRC as instructional tools. The Space Shot simulates liftoff, and the G-Force Accelerator simulates the G-forces put on astronauts while re-entering the Earth's atmosphere or during launch.

The Intuitive Planetarium provides a venue for presenting space and science-oriented shows produced through a Digistar 7 system and 5 Christie laser projectors.[7] The planetarium is part of the center's museum complex.[8] In February 2019, the Intuitive Planetarium replaced the Spacedome IMAX theater, which had operated at the Center since 1982.[7]

Accommodation

Space Camp Habitat 1 facility

If a Space Camp program extends beyond a single day, participants are accommodated at either Habitat 1 or Habitat 2. These habitats are facilities that house both the trainers and trainees. These are mainly used by the Space Academy campers.

Aviation Challenge trainees stay in Habitat 3 where they are required to maintain military standards to their bays and racks.

Both habitats are segregated between male and female campers, usually being the males on the first floor and the females being on the second.

Other camps

There are a number of internationally licensed Space Camps, including Space Camp Turkey, Space Camp Canada (French: Camp Spatial), and Space Camp Belgium. There have been a few other space camps in the United States in the past, but they have since been closed.

Space Camp Florida

Space Camp Florida was established in 1988 and shared facilities with the Astronaut Hall of Fame in Titusville, Florida, both of which were operated by the now-defunct U.S. Space Camp Foundation. The Space Camp facility in Florida closed in 2002 due to low attendance, which led to financial difficulties. About 50,000 students attended the camp during its run, but in its final year, as few as 14 participants filled 276 slots.[9] The Astronaut Hall of Fame was sold to the Delaware North corporation and remained open until 2015 as an added attraction to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, with several simulators previously used by the camp available to all visitors.[10] As of 2020, the building was being used by Lockheed Martin to support work on the NASA Orion crew capsule.[11]

Space Camp California

Space Camp California was operated by the now-defunct U.S. Space Camp Foundation at Mountain View, California from 1996 to 2002, when it closed due to financial difficulties.[12]

Space Camp Hall of Fame

The Space Camp Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 2007 during the 25th-anniversary celebrations. The Hall was established to honor alumni and former employees by recognizing their contributions and personal time spent at the Space Camp.[13]

Inductees of Space Camp
Inductee Year
Wernher von Braun 2007
Edward O. Buckbee 2007
Georg von Tiesenhausen 2007
Dan Oates 2007
Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger 2007
James Rice 2007
Amanda Stubblefield 2007
Penny J. Pettigrew 2007
Oscar Holderer[14] 2008
Marlenn Maicki[14] 2008
Lisa Devries[14] 2008
Vincent Vazzo[14] 2008
Phillip A. Smith[14] 2008
Josh Whitfield[14] 2008
Jim Allan[15] 2009
Jerry Gleason[15] 2009
Robert Pearlman[15] 2009
Francis French 2010
J. David Hnyda 2010
Danny R. Jaques 2010
Andrea M. Hanson 2010
Michelle Thaller 2011
Valerie Meyers 2011
William Burke Hare III 2011
Stephanie Abrams 2012
Lara Elizabeth Warren 2012
Ed Van Cise 2012
Robert L. Gibson 2012
Kaya Tuncer 2014
Samantha Cristoforetti 2014
Michelle Lucas 2014
Susanna Phillips 2015
Elizabeth Keller Bierman 2015
Kathleen Rubins 2015
Bobak Ferdowsi 2015
Jason Hopkins 2016
Amy Kaminski 2016
George T. Whitesides 2016
SpaceCamp (1986 film) 2016
Serena Auñón 2017
Michelle Christensen 2017
John Hecker 2017
Jennifer Heldmann 2017
Tara Ruttley 2018
Erika Wagner 2018
Sarah Noble 2018
Tara Sweeney 2018
Mary Funk 2019
Casey Harris 2019
Christina Koch 2019
Beth Moses 2019

See also

References

  1. ^ "Space Camp". www.spacecamp.com. Retrieved 2015-11-16.
  2. ^ "U.S. Space & Rocket Center | U.S. Space & Rocket Center". www.rocketcenter.com. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  3. ^ Bob Ward and John Glenn (2009). Dr. Space: The Life of Wernher von Braun. p. 151. ISBN 978-1591149279.
  4. ^ "Space Camp Hall of Fame". U.S. Space & Rocket Center. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  5. ^ "Family Programs". Space Camp. Retrieved 2017-09-16.
  6. ^ "Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination (Press Materials)". 28 May 2010. Retrieved 23 November 2010.
  7. ^ a b Lyons, Wes (2019-02-27). "Intuitive Planetarium at U.S. Space & Rocket Center Opens Thursday". Sprocketeers. Retrieved 2021-08-13.
  8. ^ "Intuitive Planetarium". U.S. Space & Rocket Center. 2019-01-14. Retrieved 2021-08-13.
  9. ^ Sellers, Laurin (14 September 2002). "Titusville, Fla., Space Camp's Mission Is to Remain Open". Orlando Sentinel.
  10. ^ "Space Camp Will Keep Simulators, New Owner Says". Miami Herald. November 10, 2002.
  11. ^ Kelly, Emre (2020-07-17). "Lockheed Martin will lease former Astronaut Hall of Fame for NASA's Orion spacecraft". Florida Today. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
  12. ^ Kwan, Joshua L. (8 January 2002). "Space Camp California Closes for Lack of Funds". San Jose Mercury News.
  13. ^ "About the Hall of Fame | Space Camp Hall of Fame". Retrieved 2024-05-12.
  14. ^ a b c d e f "Hall of Fame Inductees". al.com. July 20, 2008. Archived from the original on August 4, 2008. Retrieved March 29, 2013.
  15. ^ a b c Clines, Keith (12 July 2009). "Space Camp adds 3 to its hall of fame". Huntsville Times. Archived from the original on 9 June 2011. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
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