Brevard businessman donates $100,000 to space museum

Photo: Gail Hannas

Retired space worker and businessman Joe Williams made a huge donation to the US Space Walk of Fame and issued a challenge that could result in another $200,000 for the foundation that preserves space history.

Williams presented a $100,000 check to Space Walk of Fame president Charlie Mars on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2015, during the annual Dinner with the Astronauts fundraiser at Suntree Country Club in Melbourne, Florida.

In addition, another $40,000 was raised at the event.

Williams, who was an engineer for several NASA contractors and has become an avid Space Walk of Fame supporter, also pledged to match other donations made this year up to $100,000. 

The Space Walk of Fame,  a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the history of the U.S. space program, was instrumental in the creation of the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and Shuttle monuments in Space View Park and the Space Walk of Fame Museum in Titusville, Florida.

Car headlights still honor sacrifice of Challenger crew

Southbound vehicles on U.S. 1 in Titusville, Florida, have their headlights on during daylight on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015, to honor the seven astronauts who died in the 1986 Shuttle Challenger accident. (Photo by Scott Gunnerson)

Motorists in Titusville, Florida, and other communities surrounding Kennedy Space Center drove in the daylight with their headlights on Wednesday as a tribute to the seven crew members who died aboard the Shuttle Challenger on Jan. 28, 1986.

It was a somber reminder of the day after the accident when practically every car's lights were beaming in what was described by South Florida newspaper reporter Neil Santaniello as an "eerie and unending funeral procession with no hearse in the lead."

Wednesday was also a Day of Remembrance for NASA to honor every individual who lost their life in the pursuit of space exploration.

"Today we remember and give thanks for the lives and contributions of those who gave all trying to push the boundaries of human achievement," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in a statement.

"On this solemn occasion, we pause in our normal routines and remember the STS-107 Columbia crew; the STS-51L Challenger crew; the Apollo 1 crew; Mike Adams, the first in-flight fatality of the space program as he piloted the X-15 No. 3 on a research flight; and those lost in test flights and aeronautics research throughout our history."

Astronaut memorial service set for Jan. 31

Astronaut Jon McBride

Two astronauts, who each piloted space shuttle missions, will take part this month in a Titusville, Florida, memorial service for astronauts who lost their lives in space accidents.

The Astronaut Memorial Service will start at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, at Astronaut Memorial Plaza in Sand Point Park. The annual ceremony is held to remember the astronauts lost in Apollo, Challenger and Columbia accidents. 

Astronaut Jon McBride will be the event's master of ceremonies. McBride piloted space shuttle orbiter Challenger that launched Oct. 5, 1984, from Kennedy Space Center. 

The keynote speaker will be Astronaut Mike McCulley, who piloted space shuttle orbiter Atlantis that launched Oct. 18, 1989, from Kennedy Space Center.

The event is organized by Titusville's Flag and Memorial Committee and the U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum, which will host an open house after the service at its facility, 308 Pine St. in Downtown Titusville.

11 astronauts to attend fundraising dinner

The U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum will celebrate space history and the technical education of our students this month with its annual Dinner with the Astronauts.

Eleven former astronauts will join museum supporters on Thursday, Jan. 29, at Suntree Country Club in Melbourne, Florida, for the fundraising dinner.

Fred Haise

The NASA astronauts who have committed to attend the event:

• Andrew Allen, STS-46, STS-62 and STS 75.
• Wendy Laurence, STS-67
• Barbara Morgan, STS-118 Teacher in Space
• Fred Haise, Apollo 13, shuttle approach and landing tests
• Al Worden, Apollo 15
• Bob Crippen, STS-1, STS-7, STS-41-C and STS-41G
• Bob Springer, STS-29 and STS-38
• Mike McCulley, STS-34
• Jon McBride, STS-41G
• Winston Scott, STS-72 and STS-87
• Greg "Box" Johnson, STS-123 and STS-134

The mission of the museum is to honor the astronauts and workers who made space flight a reality, preserve U.S. space history and educate the global community about our U.S. space history.

Proceeds from the evening will benefit the museum and its goal to continue and expand its hands-on educational programs that serve local and international students.

Next month, museum's ongoing STEM Saturdays program will begin again with the first of four monthly sessions. The program for children ages 8 to 13 provides space-related activities in science, technology, engineering and math.

For more information on the Dinner with the Astronauts, call 321-264-0434.

STEM Saturdays return to Florida space museum

An opportunity for school children to learn about science, technology, engineering and math while surrounded by the artifacts of space exploration will start next month when the U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum in Titusville, Florida, presents STEM Saturdays.

The space museum offers four workshops, from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m., with activities linked to the Florida Standards for fifth-grade science designed for students ages 8 to 13:

Science - Living in Space: International Space Station on Feb. 7. Students will investigate what it is like to live and work in space. Students will do hands-on experiments and work with glove boxes.

Technology - NASA Spinoffs and Robotics on March 7. Students examine NASA technologies, build their own robot and drive a Mars rover.

Engineering - Launch Pad Egress Design and Water Filtration Engineering Design Challenges on April 11. Students will investigate aspects of launch safety for crewed missions and design a system to protect astronauts. Students will also design water filtration devices.

Math - Map and Analyze Rocket Trajectories on May 9. Students will examine factors that influence rocket safety and create a map to determine safe launch characteristics. Students will build and launch their own paper rocket.

Each session is limited to 20 students. Cost is $25 a session and $80 for all four sessions.

To reserve a spot, call 321-264-0434.

The U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum is in Downtown Titusville, Florida, at 308 Pine St.

Historic launch console lights up space museum for holidays

U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum volunteer Keith Sowell points out 
a display on the Model IV Sequencer in the console room
at the Downtown Titusville, Florida, museum. 

Hardware responsible for launches from the Cape until 1988 provided a holiday light show last month at the U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum in Titusville.

A Model IV Sequencer, a tall cabinet of wires, controls and readouts, was one of four models used in more than 20 blockhouses to support hundreds of missile launches on the Space Coast.

More than 20 years after its final launch, the Model IV Sequencer was found in Blockhouse 16 and donated to the museum. It was refurbished and now controls simulated launch countdowns in the museum's console room.

In the room lined with actual launch consoles, lights blink and flash from displays, buttons and switches as the older sequencer controls the countdown of a simulated launch many times day. 

"It excites the kids and the families love it," said Keith Sowell, an aircraft and avionics technician who volunteers at the museum. 

"During Christmas, we shut the lights off in here and the whole place looked lit up like a Christmas tree."