Exhibitors from local and regional aerospace organizations will participate in the event including UTC Aerospace Systems and One Giant Leap, Inc. Additional exhibitors include the Aldrich Astronomical Society, the Astronomical Society of Greater Hartford, the CATO Rocketry Club, the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center, the NOAA National Weather Service, the Springfield Stars Club, and the Talcott Mountain Science Center.
SPACE EXPO visitors can meet an astronaut, try on a space suit, fly a space shuttle simulator…, make a comet, touch a space rock, meet life size droids, view planetarium shows, design, build and launch straw rockets, and much more.
NASA Astronaut (Retired) Dr. F. Story Musgrave will give lectures on his EVA (Extravehicular Activity) Spacewalks at 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. In addition, Dr. Musgrave will be available for book signings and autographs. His book The NASA Northrop T-38: Photographic Art from an Astronaut Pilot will also be available to purchase. Born in Stockbridge, MA, Story Musgrave was an NASA astronaut for over 30 years and flew on six spaceflights. A veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Musgrave served as an aircraft electrician, engine mechanic, and pilot prior to joining NASA in 1967. While a NASA astronaut, Musgrave performed the first shuttle spacewalk on the Space Shuttle Challenger’s first flight in 1983, conducted two classified Department of Defense missions, and was the lead spacewalker on the Hubble Telescope repair mission in 1993. During his fifty-five year career in military and NASA service, Musgrave accumulated 18,000 flight hours in over 160 aircraft. In addition to his flight career, Musgrave earned seven graduate degrees in subjects ranging from medicine to literature, and has been awarded 20 honorary doctorates. A true renaissance man, Musgrave has also worked as a landscape architect, and is currently a concept artist with Walt Disney Imagineering, an innovator with Applied Minds Inc., and a professor of design at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.
This event is supported in part by NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium and UTC Aerospace Systems.
Space Expo will run from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. while the Museum and Gift Shop will be open until 5:00 p.m. For the convenience of visitors, food and beverage will be available for purchase. Admission is $12.50 for ages 12 and up, $11.50 for seniors 65 and up and $7.00 for ages 4 to 11. New England Air Museum members and children 3 and under are admitted free of charge. Group rates are available for groups of 10 or more with advance registration. For more information, visit www.neam.org or call (860) 623-3305. The New England Air Museum is located in Windsor Locks, Conn. adjacent to Bradley International Airport. Take I-91 north or south to CT. exit 40 (Route 20) to Route 75 north.