The Star Trek franchise has had an enormous impact on science fiction and pop culture since the original series premiere on September 8, 1966. What may be less well known is the degree to which the show influenced NASA and the real space program. Several Star Trek actors have narrated various official NASA videos, including […]

The NASA Apollo Program accomplished six successful Moon landings in less than four years. Apollo 11 and 12 landed in 1969, Apollo 14 and 15 in 1971, and Apollo 16 and 17 in 1972. There were twelve astronauts in total that walked on the Moon. With each additional mission, the astronauts stayed longer and explored […]

After nearly a decade of designing, building, and testing, The Artemis 1 Mission is now ready to launch. NASA is currently targeting Monday, August 29, 2022, as the first liftoff date. September 2 and 5 are available backup dates if the launch needs to be rescheduled. Named for the sister of Apollo in Greek mythology, […]

On March 2, 1972, NASA launched Pioneer 10, its first space probe to the planet Jupiter. No previous space probe had ever ventured out this far. It carried eleven different scientific instruments. Its mission was to be the first probe to send back detailed data about the Jovian system. Pioneer 10 lived up to its […]

April 16, 1972, Apollo 16 lifted off the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The destination for this fifth lunar landing was a region in the Descartes Highlands area of the Moon. Apollo 16 was the second of three Apollo missions to carry a Lunar Roving Vehicle for driving on the Moon. […]

After years of planning and testing, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is finally nearing its launch date. The telescope is named for James E. Webb, who was the administrator of NASA from 1961 to 1968 and played a pivotal role in the Apollo program to land humans on the Moon. JWST is an international collaboration between NASA and its partners, the European Space Agency, and […]

The Dragon Spacecraft named Endeavour returned to Earth on Monday, November the 8th with a nighttime splash down off the Florida coast at 10:33 p.m. EST. The Crew-2 astronauts onboard Endeavour launched on April 23, 2021. NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, and ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet spent over six months on the International Space Station.   On Wednesday, November 10 at 9:03 p.m. EST, a Falcon […]

A moonless night sky will accompany you trick-or-treating but if you want a fun treat for the day, The Coca-Cola Space Science Center will be open Saturday, 10/30/2021 with a special Halloween pre-show in our planetarium! For those at home, we have gathered some ideas or anyone who wants to put a space-y twist on […]

It was 64 years ago that the space age truly began with the launch of the first artificial orbital satellite. Sputnik 1 was launched on October 4th, 1957, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Soviet Kazakhstan. The Russian word “Sputnik” means “companion”.  This first artificial satellite was about the size of a beachball with 4 antennas attached. It carried no scientific instruments, only a radio transmitter […]

The recent SpaceX launches have made a point of sharing the zero-g indicators astronauts use to float around the capsules as they launch into space including a stuffed globe, a stuffed dinosaur, a Baby Yoda doll, and a stuffed penguin. These toys are not the first in space though, astronauts have had a long history […]

On May 18, 1969, the Apollo 10 mission lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was the only Apollo mission to launch from Launch Complex 39B. The purpose of the Apollo 10 mission was to conduct a full test of the lunar module in lunar orbit, obtain close up photography of the landing site for […]

On Sunday, May 2, the astronauts of NASA’s Crew-1 mission returned to Earth in a parachute-assisted splashdown at 2:56 a.m. EDT off the coast of Panama City, Florida. Crew-1 launched on November 15, 2020, aboard the Dragon Spacecraft named Resilience and spent nearly six months on the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, and Shannon Walker, along with Soichi Noguchi of the […]

With a crew of four aboard, the SpaceX Dragon Spacecraft named Endeavour is poised to take flight for the second time on Friday morning, April 23 at 5:49 a.m. EDT from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission is designated the Crew-2 mission since it is the second operational commercial crew flight.  Join the CCSSC watch party Coffee and Dragons: […]

It was 60 years ago, on April 12, 1961, that the first human was launched into space aboard the Soviet Vostok 1 spacecraft. Onboard was 27-year-old cosmonaut and citizen of the Soviet Union, Yuri Gagarin. Gagarin became not only the first human in space, but also the first to complete an orbit of the Earth. It would be nearly a year later, on February […]

On Thursday, February 18, the Perseverance rover successfully landed at Jezero Crater on Mars after a six-and-a-half-month journey from Earth. The landing represented the culmination of years of mission design, planning, and preparation by hundreds of people involved in the project.   Perseverance brings the total number of successful NASA probe landings on Mars to nine. Previous landings included Viking 1 and Viking 2 in […]

Watching the festivities as Perseverance descended on Mars was exciting! If you would like to extend the celebration in your home, check out these links: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/timeline/landing/ This landing timeline has all the videos you need to relive the landing experience. You can even use the backgrounds to picture yourself on Mars! https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/explore-mars/en/ This logic based […]

On January 31, 1971, Apollo 14 lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was the first Apollo mission to the Moon since the failure of the Apollo 13 mission in April of 1970. While the crew of Apollo 13 did make it back to Earth alive, they were unable to complete their […]

The year 2021 will see several exciting space events take place. Here is a brief overview of just some of the highlights that are scheduled for the year.   February will be the month of Mars with no less than three different missions from three countries reaching the red planet. First up will be the United Arab Emirates orbiter mission HOPE on […]

We can make these rockets move with a tiny drop of soap! Water molecules stick to themselves with strong hydrogen bonds and the rocket sticks to the water in similar ways that take advantage of the surface tension. We can weaken the pull of the the water, the surface tension, with soap, a surfactant. If […]

On December 1, 2020 at 10:11 a.m. Eastern time, the China National Space Administration’s Chang’e-5 spacecraft successfully landed near Mons Rümker in the area of the Moon known as Oceanus Procellarum, or the “Ocean of Storms”. This is a sample return mission and will bring back the first new lunar material since the Soviet Union’s Luna 24 Mission in 1976. That mission returned 170 grams of lunar samples to the Earth. The Chang’e 5 return vehicle is designed to bring back […]

On Sunday, November 15th, the Crew Dragon Capsule Resilience lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida with a crew of four headed to the International Space Station. The flight had originally been scheduled for Saturday the 14th, but was postponed because of weather concerns. The launch of the Space X Crew-1 Mission with astronauts Shannon Walker, Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins, and Soichi Noguchi marked the first ever capsule spacecraft flight with four […]

On November 2, 2020 NASA celebrated 20 years of occupancy of the International Space Station. The first crew to live on the station arrived on November 2, 2000. The Expedition 1 crew consisted of NASA astronaut Bill Shepherd, and cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev. They stayed on the station for 136 days before being replaced by the Expedition 2 crew. In the following […]

A Full Moon and a night that is functionally longer because of the time change is an exciting time to celebrate Halloween. The Coca-Cola Space Science Center will be open 10/31/2020 with some special Halloween flair! Come in costume for your entry time of 10am, 12pm, or 2pm for our family-friendly 90 minute program! For […]

On October 20, 2020, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft completed a major milestone in its mission by using its robotic arm to collect samples from Asteroid Bennu. The sample collection event was the culmination of a mission that launched over four years ago.  Designed to unlock the mysteries of the asteroid Bennu, OSIRIS-REx launched on September 8, 2016. OSIRIS-REx- stands for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer. These are […]

The closest planet to the Earth, Venus, has been in the news recently with the discovery of phosphine gas in its atmosphere. An international team of astronomers has presented evidence that the cloud tops of Venus contain traces of phosphine, a toxic gas that is produced by microbial life here on Earth. No currently known non-biological processes can create phosphine in the conditions found […]

On Saturday, September 26th, 2020 the Coca-Cola Science Center discussed the Apollo 15 mission to the Moon while viewing the landing site from the West Rock Observatory at the Coca-Cola Space Science Center. With funding in part from AT&T, the team showed why the mission was embarked on, why it was dangerous, and the fascinating […]

On May 7, 1992, the Space Shuttle Endeavour lifted off from Kennedy Space Center on its first flight into space. The mission was STS-49, and it would turn out to be a record-breaking mission of many firsts. The Endeavour had been built as a replacement shuttle after the Challenger was lost on January 28, 1986. The contract for […]

On Thursday, July 30, 2020, NASA and the United Launch Alliance launched the historic Mars 2020 Rover, Perseverance, to the Red Planet. Perseverance is carrying many exciting first-time experiments, including the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter that will make history’s first attempt at powered flight on another planet. The mission is scheduled to arrive at Mars on […]

As NASA celebrates the recent launch of the Perseverance Mars Rover, let’s take a look back at the very first successful NASA spacecraft landing on Mars. It happened during the United States Bicentennial celebration year of 1976. The Viking Project would send a pair of space probes to Mars. Each pair would consist of two […]

This activity takes a little bit of preparation to make a fun mystery activity for kids of all ages to solve. I recommend adults make the baking soda rocks and explain the reaction with kids ahead of time so they might be more successful with this mystery. You may also want to check out The […]

When scientists examine rocks from our planet or from far beyond it they can use a variety of methods to help identify what they are. The identity and composition of the rock can tell scientists a lot about the environment where they were made. Some rocks can be identified by adding acid to them; if […]

While the International Space Station has been an ongoing project for NASA for over 20 years, it is not the first space station that the United States was involved with. After the final Apollo Moon landing, Apollo 17, NASA turned its sights back to Earth orbit. Using hardware elements that were left over from the […]

Many of the spaces images we see have enhanced coloring so we can gather information about what the object is made of and it also makes them look spectacular! You can make your own designs that look like space objects and then look for a real life object that looks similar to your own using […]

The Moon’s surface is made of lots of volcanic minerals like plagioclase feldspar and pyroxene that give off a grayish color when viewed from space. In this activity we will make a material that looks similar in texture to the surface of the Moon but is made of a very different material: flour! Activity Age: […]

In May 1972, an agreement was reached between the United States and the Soviet Union that would set the stage for an historic meeting in space. At the height of the cold war, President Richard M. Nixon and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR Aleksey N. Kosygin signed an Agreement on Cooperation […]

The summer months are great for spending time outdoors with it staying bright so late but that can make it difficult for those of us with early bedtimes to spot the nighttime constellations. With this activity, you can look for those constellations anytime! There are two main ways you might want to go about this […]

2020 marks the 25th anniversary of a milestone mission in the 30 year history of the Space Shuttle program. While there were many important space shuttle missions, STS-71 stands out because it was the first time ever that a space shuttle docked with a space station in orbit. STS-71 was also the 100th U.S. human […]

After watching the SpaceX Crew Dragon Capsule Endeavour launch your family is probably excited about all things space! Here is a fun activity for space-enthusiasts of all ages: Dry-Erase Space Races! Activity Age: 1 and upActivity Set-Up Time: 2 minutesActivity Clean-Up Time: 2 minutes Materials:1 plate with a smooth shiny surface (something like a ceramic […]

When the Space Shuttle began flying in 1981 one of its promised goals was to repair and service satellites in orbit that had malfunctioned. Since most satellites were extremely expensive at this time, it was reasoned that repairing one would be more economical than launching a new one. In order to aid the astronauts in […]

On Saturday, May 30, 2020, an almost nine year long hiatus in launching astronauts from United States soil was finally broken. The successful launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Dragon Crew Capsule carrying astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley marked a milestone for the NASA Commercial Crew Program. After the launch, the […]

Next week, on May 27th, 2020, NASA will be sending American Astronauts from American soil up to the International Space Station for the first time in 9 years! The Crew Dragon Astronauts have sleek looking suits to head up in the Space-X Falcon Rocket to keep them safe on their travels. You can make your […]

NASA is preparing for a momentous day on May 27, 2020. Barring any unforeseen delays, this is the day that astronauts will launch once again from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will mark the first time astronauts have launched from U.S. soil since the last Space Shuttle flight of Atlantis on July 8, […]

One of the Coca-Cola Space Science Center’s educators, Sarah Nupen, leads a kid-friendly sky tour showing how to navigate the night sky and some of the constellations you can see in May. She references our cardinal directions; the constellations Ursa Major, Ursa minor, Bootes, Virgo; and even some Hawaiian starlines! This is a chance to […]

Happy 90th anniversary to the 1st Planetarium in the US! Today, May 12th, 2020, is the 90th anniversary of the 1st planetarium built in the United states. The Adler planetarium was built in Chicago back in 1930 as a “classroom under the heavens” for astronomy education. Built to display an accurate representation of stars, planets […]

In 1980, Voyager 1 became only the second space probe to ever fly past the planet Saturn. Voyagers 1 and 2 were twin space probes that were launched in 1977. They were designed for what was to be called the grand tour of the outer planets. A rare alignment of planets that only occurs every […]

Follow along as Astronomer Dr. Williams guides you through the positioning of the Sun, Moon, and Earth and the different phases we can see from here on Earth. You can fill in the Lunar night side of the Moon (the shadowed dark part) of each circle on this activity sheet (Click Here) to start to […]

Almost four years before the Columbia Space Shuttle flew into space for the first time on April 12, 1981, another shuttle took to the skies for some important tests that would pave the way for Columbia’s journey. In August 1977 a series of glide tests were begun with the first prototype shuttle. A letter writing […]

If you love the beauty of a starry night and all the mysterious treasures waiting to be discovered with a telescope or binoculars, this is the event for you! Join in the fun of a Virtual Astronomy Night and tour of the nighttime sky with CSU Astronomy professors, Drs. Rosa Williams and Andy Puckett. In […]

Ever wondered what they look and feel like up close? Stop wondering and start creating. With just a few basic materials lying around the house, you can create your own cloud in a jar! Adult supervision needed with matches and boiling water being used. LESSON: Clouds are things we see in the sky all the […]

On December 4, 1996 NASA launched its first mission to land on Mars in 20 years. Called Pathfinder, this would be only the third time NASA had attempted to land a spacecraft on Mars. The previous two landings of the Viking 1 and Viking 2 spacecraft occurred in the Summer of 1976. Both of the […]

Between July 1969 and December 1972, The United States accomplished six successful landings on the Moon with the Apollo Program. Twelve different astronauts walked on the lunar surface. Since 1972, no astronaut has ventured past low Earth orbit. Now, for the first time in almost 50 years, NASA is gearing up to send astronauts to […]

If you love the beauty of a starry night and all the mysterious treasures waiting to be discovered with a telescope or binoculars, this is the event for you! Join in the fun of a Virtual Astronomy Night and tour of the nighttime sky with CSU Astronomy professors, Drs. Rosa Williams and Andy Puckett. In […]

Find objects around your home to make a scale model of our solar system! Mr. Downey is a Muscogee County School District Educator working at the Coca-Cola Space Science Center. Lesson: The Solar System is very large! Think about this: we sent a probe to Pluto back in 2006 which took 9 and a half […]

The year 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of one of NASA’s most famous missions. On April 11, 1970, the mission of Apollo 13 began with liftoff from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was to be the third human lunar landing after the successful missions of Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 in 1969. The mission […]

Build a car at home and compete for fun! Use materials already in your house and learn about Newton’s Law while racing your cars. Mr. Downey is a Muscogee County School District Educator working at the Coca-Cola Space Science Center. Lesson: Newton’s laws of motion are the guide for all space companies and the designs […]

Dr. Rosa Williams utilized online tools to provide a preview of the night sky for April 4, 2020. Additionally, she covered some of the tools you can use at home to learn about, and find constellations and more in the night sky. Watch and learn! Useful tools to help explore the night sky http://stellarium.org/ https://www.heavens-above.com/ […]

On July 26, 1971, Apollo 15 lifted off for the Apennine Mountains of the Moon. While this would be the fourth successful lunar landing after Apollo missions 11,12 and 14, it would also be a mission of many firsts. The crew of Apollo 15 consisted of veteran astronaut David R. Scott as commander. He had […]

Sarah Nupen used a computer program called Stellarium to show the sky for March 25, 2020. She talked about direction, the movement of the sun, and a few constellations you might be able to spot yourself! Useful tools to help explore the night sky http://stellarium.org/ https://www.heavens-above.com/ http://skymaps.com/downloads.html

Missed our virtual tour of the Space Science Center on Facebook Live in March 2020? Enjoy it again here and share it with friends. Get a close up look at the Center and hear some of the great stories behind our many artifacts. Dr. Cruzen also answers some questions from the public. If you have […]

July 20, 2019 marked the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, the first human moon landing in 1969. 2019 also marks another important 50th spaceflight anniversary, Apollo 12, the second human moon landing. The Apollo 12 mission proved that landing on the moon was repeatable, and paved the wave for true scientific exploration of the moon. […]

On 3 November 1957, the first dog was sent into space by the Soviet Union aboard Sputnik 2. Named Laika, she would be followed by several other space canines including the pair Belka and Strelka in August 1960. The United States launched Chimpanzees on rockets in preparation for human flights by astronauts. On 31 January […]