Category Archives: Space camps & hands on sims

“Train Like a Martian Challenge”: Sign up for a week of activities for all ages

The Mars Generation is sponsoring the second Train Like A Martian Challenge event May 22-26, 2017:

Sign up now and join us for our second annual #TrainLikeAMartian event! We expect the event will be a blast!

#TrainLikeAMartian is an entire week of activities to bring awareness to the importance of STEM education, space exploration and physical fitness to students and adults around the world! This is a chance to have fun, spread an important message and also have a chance to win some cool prizes!

Prizes include TMG keychains, TMG magnets, TMG patches, TMG pins, TMG logo t-shirts, TMG logo sweatshirts and more! One lucky participant has the chance to win an OSMO Coding Jam, sponsored by STEM Genius Hour. We are excited to share that our grand prize is a Jade Robot by Mimetics valued at approximately $200 (USD). 

We are also raising funds to support the programs that The Mars Generation operates including sending students with financial need to Space Camp. Fundraising is not required to participate. We have special rewards for donors and fundraisers. Click here to see rewards.

Sign Up Now to qualify for prizes and also receive email updates for the Train Like A Martian Challenge!

“Maker Camp” virtual summer camp is now open

 Maker Camp opened today at MAKE Google+:

Maker Camp (from Google+ and MAKE Magazine) is back for the third annual six-week virtual summer camp for quirky tinkering, building and fun STEM projects. Everyday at 11am PT/2pm ET until August 15, millions of folks (especially teenagers!) around the world will hang out live on Maker Camp’s Google+ page for 30 DIY projects (think building glowing bikesstroboscopes, and taking field trips to NASA, Lego and Cartoon Network studios).

This afternoon we’ll be kicking off with a field trip to NASA Goddard Space Flight Center with legendary astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Campers will go behind the scenes to check out the James Webb Space Telescope being assembled live! Afterward, campers will learn how to build milk jug rocket launchers and soda bottle rocket LED fireworks.

Campers can log in to the MAKE Google+ and follow along with that day’s project, ask questions and engage with members of the MAKE community. Also check out the official Maker Camp website for all the details on our kickoff week.

Update: Here is a video of today’s session: Maker Camp: Blasting Off with Buzz Aldrin and NASA

Program sends educators to Space Camp

The Honeywell Educators @ Space Academy project sends teachers to Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama:

this professional development program is designed to help middle school math and science teachers from around the world become more effective educators in science, technology, engineering, and math. Educators are empowered with supplemental teaching techniques through simulated astronaut training and innovative educational tools that help bring science to life in the classroom.

Here’s are article about teachers in Illinois who participated in the program: At Space Academy, teachers learn to help students reach for the stars – Chicago Sun-Times.

Space Camp plans major upgrade after financial recovery

The famous Space Camp at the US Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama nearly went out of business in the late 1990s when a failed project to provide free camp stays for fifth graders left it heavily in debt. After many years of working down that debt they are now in position to pursue a major modernization of their facility and programs: U.S. Space & Rocket Center celebrates ‘watershed’ financial achievement, upgrade Space Camp facilities | AL.com.

Glad to hear they are moving away from the out-of-date Space Shuttle-centric approach and will be including commercial spaceships in their programs:

“I’m going to be upgrading the Space Camp training and simulation areas substantially to match what is in the runway of my Space Camp students. We’ve already got the Orion capsule and the return to the moon mission. We’ll be adding the Mars mission, we’ll be adding capturing an asteroid activities. We will add (SpaceX) Dragon. We will add (SNC) Dream Chaser. We will be adding all the commercial and next generation NASA vehicles and mission scenarios to the Space Camp training curriculum. It’s not going to be the same ol’ fly-the-shuttle anymore.”

A report on a trip to the Adult Space Academy at Space Camp USA

The author of this article gives an entertaining account of participating in the Adult Space Academy program at Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama: From ‘moonwalking’ to landing a space shuttle, the Adult Space Academy in Huntsville, Ala., gives the starry-eyed a taste of what it’s like to train as an astronaut. – latimes.com.