What are the current goals of your project?

As I forward into the second half of my internship, I hope to deliver programming on some lesser-known sides of NASA. Being that the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium is very environmentally conscious, I would like to focus on the Earth and climate side of NASA. I hope to create activities that bring up conversations of rising water, greenhouse gasses, as well as other climate change issues. I would also like to touch on NASA’s Division of Biological and Physical Sciences as I feel like not only would it align with NASA programming, but also align with the ideals and goals of the museum. I think touching on these biological topics would inspire museum guests while also informing visitors about the multiple aspects of the agency.

Lastly, I hope to develop programming for the museum that is long lasting. The MakerSpace at the River Museum is quite a new place and is still figuring out what it is as an area. I have greatly enjoyed working in the space so far and look forward to seeing what more it becomes. I absolutely love seeing guests of all ages light up as they discover what they can create and hope that these experiences inspire them to try new things. I believe that this perfectly aligns with NASA as the agency was created to do things that were never achieved before.

What accomplishments has your project made so far?

With my responsibilities of leading educational programming showcasing NASA, I have attempted to excite museum visitors young and old with interactive activities that display NASA’s work. In the National Mississippi River Museum’s MakerSpace, there are more self-guided STEM stations that inspire curiosity and innovation. In one of these stations is a “wind tunnel” that was used for kids to play with feathers and learn about weight. I transformed this station into an activity that teaches guests about the Mars Helicopter “Ingenuity.” Guests will educate themselves by reading posters with facts about Ingenuity and then attempt to make their own helicopter out of paper. These helicopters are then placed into this make-shift wind tunnel and fly up and out the top. I found that this attracted visitors of all ages and used the opportunity to talk about the use of wind tunnels in aerospace engineering.

At the station there are also astronaut and planet coloring sheets so that guests can imagine life in space and what it would be like to be an astronaut. Younger guests especially like to decorate their astronauts to look like them and watch them fly up the wind tunnel. I find that this inspires them as they seem to shout “I made it to space” when their crafts fly. Another activity I engineered is a “dramatic play” based on the Artemis mission. I made a makeshift spaceship with many buttons and lights to capture the attention of visitors. On my “ship” is a control panel, orbit map, and various other interactive features. The idea inspires guests to put themselves in the mission by filling out a mission log to learn about the preparation it takes to go to space. This activity is also an “experimental” area where guests investigate clay “lunar rocks,” and practice scientific methods and thinking. It attracts many younger visitors and provides educational opportunities along with play.

A coworker and I created a “robot” activity involving coding “Botley” robots through a path or to draw a picture for the MakerSpace. This is not specifically a NASA showcasing station, but this station is used to teach about coding and various real-life robots which I use to educate visitors on NASA robotics and rovers. Besides activities, I used decorations to push NASA ideals and creativity. I made a “Space Wall” with the NASA logo and solar system that connects to the museum by having the words “MakerSpace Is Out Of This World.” Guests have taken pictures in front of this wall as it captures the attention of the younger visitors. I also created an “Earth Wall” that talks about climate change with some climate change posters from NASA’s website.

Lastly, I am attempting to highlight NASA with the MakerSpace equipment. Using the 3D printers at the museum, I have printed a miniature Saturn V, Space Shuttle, the NASA worm and Meatball logo, and a version of the chainmail-like Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s space fabric. With my time at the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium, I feel that I have successfully showcased NASA and NASA’s work, and look forward to continuing displaying their inspiring efforts by delivering educational programming that is focused on more than just the space aspects of the organization.