NASA Astronaut Christopher Cassidy will join a team of explorers — from NASA and from Jamestown, Va. — in Boston July 14, and will give a glimpse into exploration of the future, tying it to adventures from 400 years ago.
Cassidy will be in Boston this Friday as part of the Godspeed Sail, the kick-off event for an 18-month long commemoration recognizing the first permanent English settlement in the United States at Jamestown, Va., in 1607. He plans to share the spirit of exploration with Boston visitors.
Cassidy was selected by NASA in May 2004 after 10 years as a member of the U.S. Navy SEAL Teams. In February 2006 he completed Astronaut Candidate Training that included scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in Shuttle and International Space Station systems, physiological training, T-38 flight training, and water and wilderness survival training. Completion of this initial training qualifies him for various technical assignments within the Astronaut Office and future flight assignments as a mission specialist.
Cassidy will be available for interviews following the Godspeed Sail’s opening ceremony at 11 a.m. July 14 at Boston’s Harbor. He will also speak at the Museum of Science at 9:15 a.m. and at the Boston Children’s Museum at 1 p.m. July 14. Media interested in covering the events or arranging an interview with Cassidy should contact Lindsay Crouch at 757-870-6912.
In addition to Cassidy, a NASA educator will give insight into the connections between NASA explorers and the Jamestown settlers. Becky Jaramillo, from NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., will support the educational programs at the Boston Children’s Museum July 14 by drawing parallels between exploration in 1607 and NASA’s plans to go back to the moon and then to Mars. She will be available at the museum, leading interactive math and science activities and answering questions from visitors.
NASA is partnering with Jamestown 2007 in a number of signature events to promote exploration — past and present. NASA has an interactive exhibit that will be set up near a newly-built replica of the Godspeed, the ship that brought the first English colonists to the New World. The Godspeed “floating museum” will be docked at the Boston Harbor from July 14-19.
On the pier will be the NASA tent and the rest of the “Landing Party Festival,” a 40,000 square-foot area featuring live music, family entertainment, and historical displays that are free to the public. NASA’s exhibit gives visitors the chance to make a personalized “Space Postcard;” take photographs as an astronaut or settler; and win prizes for participating in a NASA trivia game. The exhibit highlights the connections between the adventurous men and women who settled in Virginia almost 400 years ago and NASA’s plans to explore space and establish a presence on other worlds.
NASA’s Vision for Space Exploration is working to return humans to the moon and develop the tools needed to further explore Earth, the moon, Mars and beyond. The road to discovery, much like the path to Jamestown, involves searching for water, accommodating human needs, developing new forms of transportation and establishing a settlement or space colony.
The Boston stop is the fifth of six major port calls for the Godspeed and its landing party along the East Coast. The seventeenth century replica has already sailed to Alexandria, Va., Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York and will head to Newport, R.I.
With this program, NASA continues the Agency’s tradition of investing in the Nation’s education programs. It is directly tied to the Agency’s major education goal of engaging Americans in NASA’s mission. NASA is committed to building strategic partnerships and linkages between formal and informal education providers in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math. Through hands-on, interactive educational activities, NASA is engaging students, educators, families, the general public and all Agency stakeholders to increase Americans’ science and technology literacy.
For information about NASA research and exploration, visit:
For information about Jamestown 2007 events, visit:
