NASA and JPL to particpate in AHC’s Mars Week Leading up to historic launch from Vandenberg AFB

Staff Report

NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) will make history from Vandenberg Air Force Base on May 5, with the first interplanetary launch on the West Coast. NASA and JPL will send an InSight lander to Mars to study the planet’s deep interior. Leading up to their historic launch, representatives from NASA and JPL, including NASA’s chief scientist, will participate in Allan Hancock College’s Mars Week from Monday, April 30, through Friday, May 4.  All events are free and open to the public.

“The college wants to provide students, staff and the community with an opportunity to learn more about this historic launch. What better way to do that than from the scientists who are making it happen,” said Richard Mahon, academic dean at the college. “Our committee organized out-of-this-world activities at our Santa Maria campus and Lompoc Valley Center. The week culminates with our annual Friday Night Science event that draws nearly 2,000 area children and their families for an evening where science and fun collide.”

The Associated Student Body Government (ASBG) will launch the festivities from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday, April 30, in the Commons on the Santa Maria campus. Students can build foil hats similar to those made in the movie Signs. Visitors can race Mars Rover remote control cars and write messages to Martians on an interactive white board.

Later that day from 3 – 7 p.m., the public can view two space-related movies during the Mars & the Silver Screen Film Festival. Hancock faculty will lead a group discussion and screen the movies War of the Worlds and Mars Attacks. War of the Worlds, a 1953 science-fiction and Academy Award-winning classic, shows the chaos that ensures when Martians attack a small California town. Mars Attacks is about the world’s reaction when a fleet of Martian spacecraft surrounds the world’s major cities. The films will be screened in The Forum (bldg. C, Room 40) on the Santa Maria campus.

The film festival moves to the college’s Lompoc Valley Center on Tuesday, May 1, from 1- 5 p.m. Movies will be screened in bldg. 3, Room 114.

At 2 p.m. on Tuesday, the college will dedicate two student murals in the courtyard of the Lompoc Valley Center, located between buildings 1, 2 and 3. Created by Ruben Espinoza, Looking to the Future and Unknown Endeavor pay tribute to the college, the Lompoc Valley, Vandenberg Air Force Base and space exploration. Commissioned by the student club SOAR, these will be the first murals displayed at the Lompoc Valley Center.

“I am honored and proud that my art will be a part of the college and add to the city of Lompoc’s rich mural history,” said Espinoza, a first-generation college student and U.S. Army veteran. “Outer space represents our greatest ambitions. I wanted to pay tribute to the roles the college and the U.S. Air Force play in the community, while still making the art relatable to other students studying different disciplines.”

Community members will get the chance of a lifetime to hear about the historic mission from NASA’s chief scientist. Dr. Jim Green headed NASA’s planetary science for 12 years until he was named chief scientist earlier this month. In his new job, Green will serve as the main adviser to the NASA chief and other top agency brass, as well as communicate NASA’s research goals and achievements to the broader scientific community. Green has managed successful missions to Mercury, Pluto, the moon and beyond. Green will provide a free presentation at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 1, inside the Marian Theatre.

After NASA officials visit with Hancock students and faculty on Wednesday, they will host an open lecture on Thursday, May 3, in bldg.M, Room 310 on the Santa Maria campus from 3:30 – 5 p.m. Students and the public can learn details about NASA’s historic mission and what scientists hope to discover. Seating is limited to the first 99 people.

Later in the week, NASA will set up interplanetary exhibits inside the Rabobank Student Center on the Santa Maria campus. Visitors will be able to experience space travel and realistic views of planets and the solar system through virtual reality and state-of-the-art computer simulations. Guest can also learn about the historic launch and see actual meteorites and rocks from the moon. NASA’s exhibit will be open from 12 – 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 3, and again from 1 – 8:30 p.m. on Friday, May 4.

Mars Week comes to an exciting close on Friday, May 4, when the college hosts Friday Night Science. The annual event includes spectacular scientific demonstrations and hands-on learning activities. The event is free and features fun for the entire family from 6 – 8:30 p.m. in and around bldg. M on the Santa Maria campus. The event offers dozens of exhibits, a walk-in planetarium, a design village created by Hancock architecture students and an explosive stage show featuring Hancock chemistry and physics faculty. AERA Energy, a proud sponsor of the college’s Bulldog Bound program, will also participate in Friday Night Science with an exhibit called Geology Rocks.

“This is one of the college’s biggest events of the year,” said Linda Metaxas, physics faculty and event organizer. “What better way to spark the interests of young children in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, better known as STEM, than with fun and engaging exhibits and demonstrations. To have NASA and JPL involved this year is an unbelievable opportunity for the college, our students and the entire community.”

Friday Night Science is made possible through a grant from Ted and Cheryl Maddux.

InSight is scheduled to launch under the pre-dawn skies from Vandenberg AFB on Saturday between 4:05 – 6:05 a.m.

All Mars Week events are free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.hancockcollege.edu/MarsWeek.