Posted by Chris Radcliff in Education, Projects, SAL on September 29, 2010
On Saturday, September 18th, Derek Nye led a model rocketry workshop at the Space Activities Lab in South Park. Seven San Diego students attended the free hands-on event, the first in a series offered by SD Space.
While building their rocket kits, the students learned about aerodynamics, construction techniques, and the fundamentals of rocketry itself. Many of the kids were introduced to rocketry for the very first time. By the time we were done, they had a fully built rocket ready to fly that they built themselves, proving their own capabilities in working hands on with tools, and their ability to take on an interesting project.
Derek and the kids hope to launch their rockets at an upcoming Dart Rocketry event. Contact projects@sdspace.org if you’d like to participate, or if you’re interested in attending future workshops.
Posted by Chris Radcliff in Junior Explorers, Projects on September 22, 2010
Over the summer, SD Space fielded a team for the Moonbots challenge. After the main competition was done, we continued with a mini-challenge of our own for younger kids. The program was recently featured in an article on the Calit2 website:
About 15 children ranging in age from 6 to 11 participated in the program, which was sponsored by ViaSat (a producer of satellite and other digital communications) and led by Calit2’s MyLab Director Saura Naderi. Naderi collaborated with the San Diego Space Society to recruit children for the challenge, which taught them the basics of robot design, from gear mechanics to programming.
You can view all the progress reports (including weekly video blogs) on the team’s Moonbots Mini-Challenge site.
Thanks again to Saura Naderi, Derek Nye, Moonbots, Calit2, and ViaSat for all they did to make this program work. We look forward to participating again next year.
Posted by Jesse Clark in Calendar, Education, Events, Projects, Science on August 23, 2010
Sat, Sep 18, 2010
12:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Location:
Space Travelers Emporium (map)
1947 30th St. San Diego, CA 92102
UPDATE: Registration for the rocket workshop is full. Please email events@sdspace.org if you would like to be added to the waiting list.
Interested in building something? Get together with other SD Space members to work on space-related projects.
This month’s Saturday build session includes a special model rocket workshop.
Rockets have been used since the 1930s to explore the upper atmosphere and eventually space beyond. While our rocket kits won’t go that high, they will teach us about rockets, why they fly fast and furious, and how they can be used to carry satellites, robotic explorers and humans into orbit and beyond. Join us and build one of your own flying rockets.
Members and the public are welcome to attend, but please register in advance to receive one of 10 free model rocket kits. RSVP to events@sdspace.org to participate.
Note: All ages welcome. If under 10 years old, parents are encouraged to also attend.
Posted by Jesse Clark in Astronomy, Education, Projects on July 2, 2010
Space is a big place, and even with their giant telescopes, astronomers just can’t cover it all. This is where you come in. Yes, YOU!
Astronomy is one of the few scientific fields where amateur scientists can, and frequently do, make significant contributions. But now space scientists are increasingly also looking to people with little or no training for help with their research. Sometimes they are looking for free labor for tasks that humans can still do better than computers, like identifying different types of galaxies. Other times it’s numbers of eyes on the sky or feet on the ground they’re after. But more and more, they are finding ways to get regular citizens involved.
Here are some astronomy projects you can take part in right now:
Hunt for Meteorites
Mars Student Imaging Project
HiWish
Be a Martian
Stardust@Home
Galaxy Zoo and Moon Zoo
Read More wired.com
Posted by Jesse Clark in Calendar, Chapter Updates, Events, Projects on July 1, 2010
Wed, Jul 21, 2010
Wed, Jul 28, 2010
6:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Location:
Space Travelers Emporium (map)
1947 30th St. San Diego, CA 92102

Get together with other SD Space members to work on space-related projects. We’ve got rockets, rovers and plenty of other projects to build.
Members and the public are welcome to attend. Please RSVP to events@sdspace.org if you’d like to participate.
If you cannot join us during the week, look for the once-a-month Saturday Project Build Day coming soon.