In 1962, President John F. Kennedy launched the country into a new frontier of space exploration when he said, “We choose to go the Moon in this decade.” At the time President Kennedy said these words, the computers and software needed to land on the Moon did not exist, we had yet to escape Earth’s gravity, and the type of alloy needed to protect the astronauts from the heat of reentry had not been invented. However, this did not stop the science and engineering communities who came together to push the boundaries of research and innovation to make further space exploration possible. As a result, the Apollo 11 mission landed on the Moon 50 years ago this July.
Free JFK Space Labs Explorers Program Presented by Raytheon
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, and President Kennedy’s impact on STEM learning through his advancement of America’s space program, the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation is partnering with Raytheon and the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory to present the JFK Space Labs Explorers Program presented by Raytheon.
The JFK Space Labs Explorers Program provides schools and after-school programs with exciting free experiments that use connections to the International Space Station to augment STEM teaching in the areas of Earth science, biology, computer science, and more. Brought together, these experiments create a Space Lab much like biology and chemistry labs.
As a result of these innovations, President Kennedy's vision was fulfilled when the Apollo 11 mission successfully landed Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the Moon and returned them along with fellow Astronaut Michael Collins safely to Earth 50 years ago this July 20th
