Busloads of children poured into the Fleet Science Center Thursday morning. They swarmed around real moon rocks, personal items from the ARTEMIS II crew, models and interactive simulators.
The center is celebrating humanity’s return to deep space exploration with ARTEMIS week. Visitors can explore the temporary ARTEMIS II exhibits and activities and follow the mission as it unfolds in real-time.
“You’re going up to the pad’s surface!” Adeline Morgan Roesch said to a child tilting his arms back and forth to steady a rocket on the screen in front of him.
Roesch is one of the visiting NASA guides. She said she’s loved seeing ARTEMIS II get people excited about space exploration again.
“If you just go online and you see the amount of people posting about this and engaging online with the ARTEMIS II mission, it really is inspiring. And we’re so excited to, you know, have everybody come here and become a part of it because we’re all humans on Earth. We’re all a part of this,” she said.
Tickets to watch the splashdown live in the Fleet’s Giant Dome Theater have already sold out.
Two-year-old Jack visited the exhibit on Thursday with his father, Patrick Brogan. He stared up at a depiction of the ARTEMIS II rocket launch. The rockets are his favorite part.
“And where do rockets go?” Brogan asked him. “To the moon!”
Brogan said he hopes the visit inspires Jack.
“I just want him to be experienced and get into science and start learning and be intrigued,” he said.
Roesch said that’s the goal for everyone who walks into the exhibit, regardless of their age.
“We’re the Artemis generation, we’re the golden age of space exploration, you know, we really want them to be inspired and to be a part of this,” Roesch said.
ARTEMIS week will continue at the Fleet through Saturday.