EASTON, Pa. — Space fanatics were over the moon Saturday at Lafayette College.
The second annual Lehigh Valley Space Fest kicked off Saturday, bringing families and experts together to learn about all things space related.
The event continues on Sunday, with additional family activities, lectures and hands-on learning for those that attend. The schedule can be found here.
"A lot of kids aren't afraid to ask questions, and it's awesome — there's no dumb question, we're all learning."Marty McGuire
As families and enthusiasts entered, they were treated to solar telescopes getting a glimpse at the sun they may never have gotten before as festival volunteers got to answer questions about the recent aurora borealis sightings in the Lehigh Valley.
"A lot of kids aren't afraid to ask questions, and it's awesome — there's no dumb question, we're all learning," said Marty McGuire, co-organizer of the event.
McGuire said the event first started last year after he became part of NASA's "Solar System Ambassadors" program through his work as the "Backyard Astronomy Guy."
McGuire says about 15 different organizations, clubs, and volunteer groups are represented at the event and he hopes to see it grow in future iterations.
Many experts and professionals from NASA, Air Products and Lafayette College presented, including International Space Station Operations Manager Kevin Metrocavage and retired software engineer for the NASA JPL Mars Rovers Dr. Kim Gostelow.
Exhibitors and presenters highlighted rocketry, astronomy, the structure of celestial bodies, and many other educational aspects of how space travel and policy work—- with some areas left for sci-fi and games.
Large model rockets of the SpaceX Falcon 9 and Air Force missiles were on display, along with video presentations of how they look when launching.
In the morning, many local scouts gathered to get their astronomy merit badge.
In the afternoon, children's craft activities meant to build excitement about space had them build structures and go over what they'd need to prepare for a mission to the moon.
Elijah Wo, who says he wants to be an aerospace engineer when he grows up, came with his parents because he was a big space enthusiast — and dressed for the part.
"I just like the idea of just seeing something in real life, like I saw these big modern rockets in videos, but I never saw them in actual real life."Elijah Wo
"It was interesting looking at all the globes and looking at all the rockets and 3D printed stuff," Wo said.
"I just like the idea of just seeing something in real life, like I saw these big modern rockets in videos, but I never saw them in actual real life."
This fest is in its second year, having first occurred last year at Paxinosa Elementary School in Easton.
McGuire says one of the first experiences he ever had doing outreach was to show someone the moon close-up through a telescope and wants to give more people that same excitement he saw then.
"Whether it's an adult or a kid, seeing somebody go 'whoa' or 'wow', looking at something and realizing that there's something much bigger out there and being able to bring this to the masses is a success for us because we're excited about it," McGuire said.
"We love sharing that excitement with everybody else, and this is just a great way to do it."
Dozens of companies in the Lehigh Valley region built parts of what makes space exploration possible. To learn more about this, read LehighValleyNews.com's special series "Moon to Mars" here.
