Month: December 2020

Camp Catch-Up!

Written by Britain Meithe on December 7, 2020. Posted in Alumni, Mission Updates. 1 Comment on Camp Catch-Up!

As the U.S. Space & Rocket Center faced economic disaster because of the COVID-19 pandemic, our loyal supporters and camp alumni around the world turned out in force for the Save Space Camp campaign. Thankfully, we live to fight another day. While our fundraising campaign continues, the center did not have to close its doors permanently this fall, and we were able to operate Space Camp for a short period this summer.

So how did we did we manage camp in the middle of a pandemic?

Once the Alabama Public Health Department determined camp programs could reopen, our leadership team spent hours reviewing guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and the American Camps Association to adjust our program to meet the health department’s strict guidelines. We were worried we could not offer the same impactful and immersive experience or conduct missions with masks and social distancing.

However, our team agreed we could find a way to make Space Camp work and found creative ways to face every challenge. With a plan in place, we brought in some dedicated Space Camp alumni to test new missions and give feedback before our first trainees, a small group of Alabama educators, arrived. The result was positive. It worked!

After shutting down for three months, Space Camp reopened on June 28 at about 25 percent capacity. Over nine weeks, we hosted around 1,200 trainees, providing the only taste of “normal” many had all summer. They were able to be children without the constant chatter of doom and gloom news, and they were able get away from the family they had been quarantined with for months. We had fun and learned a lot in the process.

Everyone, staff included, was happy to be at Space Camp, and we had few problems with compliance to wearing masks or social distancing. We met the requirements of the health department, and maintained the essence of Space Camp, the “magic sauce” of teambuilding, collaboration, communication and critical-thinking skills that make up our immersive experience. Even with a pandemic, our Space Camp trainees had a week that was part fun and part serious science and history.

So, what’s new for 2021? COVID hasn’t gone away, so we are making plans to return in 2021 at only 50 percent capacity. Once again, we are reviewing all Alabama Public Health orders and CDC guidance on how to safely accommodate that many children. We are reviewing our established COVID protocols and looking for opportunities to make every camp experience, even in a COVID world, the best experience we can offer.

We had to make some difficult decisions in 2020, which included not running Space Camp Robotics or Aviation Challenge to operate as safely and efficiently as possible. We wanted our lean leadership team to be able to focus solely on our core space program.

While Space Camp Robotics will remain on hold for 2021, we are bringing back Aviation Challenge and will celebrate 30 years of the program this summer. We are thrilled to introduce the first phase of upgrades to our flight simulation bays, including new Mach II simulation software donated by Lockheed Martin. We are also reviewing other needed updates to the Aviation Challenge program facilities.

We are also expanding our U.S. Cyber Camp program to include a middle school camp, and we have new partnerships with the FBI and Alabama School of Cyber Technology and Engineering going into 2021. These important partnerships will help us continue to grow a program that will help meet a critical need for cyber security in all business sectors and most specifically in the space and aviation realm.

We are grateful to the almost 9,000 individuals and corporations who donated to save our beloved camp programs. Their support for what we have always believed is staggering. Our work here is important. Space Camp is educational and fun, and it is truly work force development. Since 1982, Space Camp has been a place where our campers feel a part of something bigger than themselves. No matter what our graduates go on to do in their life’s journey, we know their time at Space Camp will serve them well.

#savespacecamp

Opportunities to Do More

Written by Britain Meithe on December 2, 2020. Posted in Alumni, Mission Updates. No Comments on Opportunities to Do More

Just like most cultural institutions around the world, 2020 has been a difficult year for the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. Attendance numbers were much lower than usual, and Space Camp isn’t operating right now, While it’s been tough, the crew at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center used this quieter time to develop new programs that could be offered to small groups in a safe and socially distanced environment. Taking advantage of areas not usually open to the public, the Rocket Center has been able to provide science-based lessons and experiences to our museum visitors. These new offerings include:

I.D.E.A.S. Lab

The I.D.E.A.S. Lab includes a fun acronym for the Invention, Design, Engineering, Astronomy and Space Lab. Each month, we tackle a new topic centered around these five core concepts. Past topics have included building Martian landers, designing and launching rockets, and mixing chemicals to determine the best combination for rocket fuel. Our education team leads children and adults on a journey of discovery and hands-on learning. That’s what really sets this experience apart – guests can get their hands dirty and put concepts they may have learned in school or read about in a book to the test!

Space Shuttle Experiences

Have you ever thought “You know, I would have made a pretty amazing astronaut,” or “It would be cool to go to outer space minus the danger”? Get the door, because opportunity is knocking! These new experiences take place on the Space Camp training floor, an area generally reserved for Space Camp. Guests may choose between the four-person Discovery Shuttle Experience or the two-person Enterprise Shuttle Experience.

In the Discovery Shuttle Experience, guests get a taste what it takes to pilot the shuttle to space and back. As the commander and pilot of the shuttle, they learn the sequence of controls needed to solve any anomalies (a fun vocabulary word for a problem) that occur by flipping the correct switches and pressing the right buttons that cover the flight consoles surrounding them. They also get a chance to land the shuttle on the runway to bring a successful flight to an end.

The Enterprise Experience takes simulated space travel to a entirely new level! Guests, acting as commander and pilot, make their way into lower Earth orbit (call it L.E.O., if you want to impress your friends) aboard the Enterprise shuttle. That’s where the fun really starts! Following a complex set of commands, commander and pilot must get ready to embark on a spacewalk to repair a broken satellite! Everyone gets strapped into a harness (you don’t want to float away in space) and works to complete a series of tasks to repair and deploy the satellite. One guest even gets to ride on the famous Canadarm that lifts the rider 15 feet into the air to allow for a close inspection of the broken satellite. After the mission is complete, commander and pilot return to the cockpit and make their journey back to Earth.

Aviation Challenge Flight Simulators

This simulator is usually reserved for Aviation Challenge campers, but this is your opportunity to take to the (simulated) skies and fly an F-18 Super Hornet. Guests sit in a cockpit surrounded by knobs, buttons, joy sticks and switches that may make them think they are in the real thing! An instructor guides the new pilot through the controls and off they go! Try a barrel roll or get really clever and attempt a Cuban Eight!
This suite of new programming joins our INTUITIVE® Planetarium shows, traditional documentary movies and virtual reality experiences to make a visit to the museum more memorable than ever before. So, if you have ever wanted to fly a fighter jet, be an astronaut, or just want to get your hands dirty in the name of science, head to rocketcenter.com and book an experience that will put your crew over the moon.

Jason-Tabor-Story Jason-Tabor-Story Jason-Tabor-Story

Space Camp Alumni Flying High Among Esteemed Pilots: Jason Tabor Alumni Story

Written by Diana Hughes on December 2, 2020. Posted in Alumni, Mission Updates. No Comments on Space Camp Alumni Flying High Among Esteemed Pilots: Jason Tabor Alumni Story

Space Camp Alumni Flying High Among Esteemed Pilots

Our Space Camp alumni are reaching great heights in careers all around the world, and Space Camp program alumnus Jason Tabor is no exception. His time at Space Camp and Aviation Challenge helped guide his passion for flying. Helping to cement his passion for flying and interest in making it a career.

Growing up in Lexington, South Carolina Jason found his love of aviation at an early age and was fascinated with flying. His grandfather, an aviator himself, would take him flying as a child. Their flights together would ignite Jason’s interest in being a pilot himself and having an avid interest in learning more about flying aircraft.

Preparing for Flight

Jason found his way to Space Camp in 1989 and arrived at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center facility again for Aviation Challenge in 1992. These experiences helped to cement his love of aviation and fuel a passion for flying. His time at Space Camp was the first time away from home on his own, and he was able to build a confidence in his experiences at camp, knowing that he was meant to be in aviation.

As a part of the Aviation Challenge, Jason was able to take part in activities that introduced him to many aeronautical concepts, including the chance to fly a basic simulator and demonstrate basic aerobatic maneuvers. His team at Aviation Challenge also flew model aircraft and spent time learning what it took to become a pilot. Learning survival skills, including the zip line into the lake, were one of his favorite activities at Aviation Challenge.

Jason would go on to get his pilot’s license to fly small aircraft a few short years after his time at Aviation Challenge.

Having the ‘Right Stuff’ to Fly

Flying planes isn’t without its challenges though. One experience in his youth found him piloting a Cessna 152 at the age of 18 that had engine trouble and required an emergency landing. He was trained for this exact scenario during his pilot trainings, although it is something you hope never happens. Jason successfully brought the plane to a landing in the middle of an empty field just north of a state park. An experience he would look back on later in his career and recall as being a foundation that, “Aviation is very safe, and the risks are mitigated through extensive training and preparation.”

This training and preparation would continue to serve him well throughout his career. A good bit of passion helped as well. “I couldn’t focus on anything other than aviation and always dreamed of being paid to do something I enjoyed.”, said Jason when he spoke of his career path.

He went on to graduate from Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University with a degree in Aeronautical Science. Jason flew night flights for the Federal Reserve Bank before moving into commercial airline service. When Jason joined United Airlines he had the opportunity to fly the Airbus 320, Boeing 737/757/767, and 777 model aircraft. Jason is also a volunteer with the Airline Pilots Association Mentor program and United Airlines Aviate program, to direct other pilots on their own path in aviation and meeting their personal goals. This breadth of experience led to become a full-time instructor in Denver for United Airlines in the Boeing 737 model aircraft.

Paying it Forward as a Pilot Mentor

Jason found a calling in mentoring and training other pilots. “The best part about being a mentor is seeing others succeed, and being able to witness that first hand.”

And it also brought him back to his experiences at Space Camp and Aviation Challenge, that were at the beginning of it all. In his words, “Seeing others reach their goals not only makes them better, but makes me better simply by being in their presence. My dad used to tell me to surround yourself with the best people, because they will continue to challenge you and bring you up. I believe this was true when I attended Space Camp and Aviation Challenge and it is true in everything I do. It is important to surround yourself with goal oriented successful individuals as they will be the ones that help bring your individual success to a new level. I am fortunate to work with the most amazing professionals that continue to challenge me and I continue to learn from others.”

Jason is making a difference in aviation every day and helping new pilots set their course. We are honored to share this Space Camp alumni story, of a Space Camp alumnus achieving their goals and dreams through hard work and dedication to their craft.

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