The new Space Center

The Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center (CMSEC) that I came to love in elementary school inspired three additional centers in Utah, two of which are practically brand-new. One is under construction at the Renaissance Academy in Lehi. The other is located at Stonehenge Center for the Arts in Pleasant Grove- to my knowledge, the first for-profit center to branch off from the CMSEC.

(In case you're interested, the third Utah center is located in Logan. These three centers are affiliated with the CMSEC, but each is managed and run as separate entities. For more information on the CMSEC's history, visit spacecamputah.org.)

Graig and I gave the for-profit Discovery Space Center a try recently. We booked a mission for our family the first Saturday in July in addition to reserving a friend mission last Saturday. From what we saw, the DSC is definitely still working out some bugs in its computer programs (but that was often true at the CMSEC too). Most important, the feeling was there- the feeling of excitement, of magic. The pressure to save the day. The euphoria that comes from just barely evading certain death. The deep satisfaction when each member of the crew plays an important role in completing the mission.

The DSC captured it, all of it. If you were willing to surrender yourself to the power of imagination, it was magic.

Flying on the UCS Endeavor

Brandon (chief engineer), Jennifer (tactical officer), Beth (communications officer), Graig (pilot), me (operations officer), Ashley (sensors officer), Sara (captain!) and Whitney (first officer)