Astronauts
Career NASA astronauts
are those individuals selected by NASA to be members of the NASA astronaut
corps. Individuals in this category make up the Space Shuttle crew positions,
such as commander, pilot, or mission specialist, or International Space
Station crew positions, such as commander or flight engineer.
Career astronauts are divided into four categories
as follows.
Active astronauts are U.S. astronauts who are currently eligible
for flight assignment, including those who are assigned to crews.
Management astronauts are experienced astronauts who have
been promoted to other positions within NASA, or astronauts on special
duty assignments or sabbaticals that make them unavailable for direct
support to the Astronaut Office.
Former astronauts are those who have left NASA after a career
in the Astronaut Corps, including those who are deceased.
International astronauts are those individuals from international
space agencies who have trained at Johnson Space Center and serve as
mission specialists with NASA.
Astronaut Snacks
Energy Fuel
All astronauts need their vitamins to stay healthy and energized!
Your guests will love this drink, without realizing how good it is for
them! Combine one 12-oz can frozen juice concentrate, 3 cups nonfat
milk, and 1 pint low-fat orange sherbet in a blender. (Halve ingredients
to prevent blender overflow.) Mix well. Serve with a wide straw and
a spoon.
Super Sundaes
Your guests will beg to stop and refuel their engines with this delicious
treat! You will need vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, chopped peanuts,
toothpicks, and construction paper. Place one scoop of vanilla ice cream
in each child’s bowl and add plenty of “oil” (chocolate syrup). Be sure
to ask each guest if he or she would like chopped peanuts added to their
sundae (in case someone is allergic.) Add a toothpick with a homemade
globe, astronaut helmet or other theme-related item made out of paper.
Your guests will love the extra special touch!
Runway Obstacle Course
This challenging game is best played outside in an open area, or
in a large room. Create a runway using sidewalk chalk, masking tape,
cones, sticks, etc. to mark the boundaries. It should be about 50 feet
long and up to 10 feet wide. Collect several non-breakable objects that
won’t be damaged if stepped on, such as sports balls, articles of clothing,
plastic toys, handbags, a large blanket, etc. These objects will represent
planes on the runway.
First, let the guests pair up and decide who will be the astronaut and
who will be the NASA air traffic controller. When the game begins, the
controller helps navigate the astronaut (who is blindfolded) down the
foggy runway without crashing into any “planes.”
To begin the game, the first astronaut stands at the start of the runway
with arms outstretched like a shuttle. The air traffic controller can
stand anywhere along the runway they wish, but they must not move. Hint:
It is easier if the air traffic controller faces the end of the runway
like the pilot. This way, directions of left and right, i.e., “Take
two steps sideways to the right,” will not be confusing.
Once the astronaut is blindfolded, the other players may toss objects
onto the runway from outside the perimeter (do not place the objects).
After all the “planes” are on the runway, the controller guides the
astronaut with his or her voice: “Move four steps forward and one to
the left - No, take smaller steps!”
If the astronaut “crashes,” another team takes a turn. When a traffic
controller successfully navigates the astronaut through the course without
crashing everyone will surely applaud! Award all your astronauts with
small prizes, no matter how far they “fly.” Great awards would be
Alien Stress Ball
Around the World
Provide a letter-sized piece of construction paper for each guest,
and let the kids have fun folding their own paper space shuttle. Encourage
the kids to decorate their personal shuttle with crayons, markers, stickers,
and any other materials you like. Meanwhile, draw a big circle on a
large piece of cardboard and cut out the circle. This will be used as
a target for the shuttles. Set the target up on a table or chair and
tape five evenly space X’s to the floor in a semicircular pattern around
it. For fun, name the X’s different countries around the world. The
first player stands on the first X and tries to fly his shuttle through
the target hole. If he makes it, he moves to the second X, and so on,
until he misses. When the first player misses, the second player takes
his turn, starting on the first X, and playing by the same rules. The
first round continues until all guests have had a turn. To begin the
second round, player #1 continues from the X where he left off, and
so on with each player. The game ends when someone has moved across
all X’s and successfully flown their shuttle through the target hole.
Time Zone Game
Astronauts often cross into different time zones and fly over different
countries as they speed across the sky. To a child, the idea that some
people are just getting up while others are turning in for the night
is fascinating. Draw on their interest with this fun version of Simon
Says. The leader stands and faces the line of players. If the leader
says, "I say sleep!" players must lay (or crouch) on the floor. If the
leader says "I say stand!" then all must stand up. As long as the leader
begins with "I say" players must obey the command. Any child who obeys
the command "sleep!" or "stand!" is out. As the leader increases his/her
speed, players will have to stand and sleep so fast that they’ll hardly
have time to think. If a player moves incorrectly, he or she is out.
The last remaining player wins!
Astronaut Race
This game is fun because it doesn’t involve any skill, and winning
is just a matter of chance. Mark a finish line on the floor with tape,
or lay the target from the first activity on the ground a short distance
away. Mark a starting line, blow up a balloon for each child and count
down from three. When you say go, everyone tries to land their "space
shuttle" inside the target, or cross the finish line by tossing or hitting
them.
Birthday Cake Mission
Children love to hunt for surprises! So on this special day, create
a secret mission to search for the birthday cake! You will need the
help of a few family members, neighbors, or friends. Separate the children
into teams and give each team a set of clues and party favors to find.
Give each child a bag to put the favors in and make sure that each guest
has at least one favor (so nobody feels left out). The clues and favors
should lead them to the location of the cake. It is best to keep the
cake close to home and under adult supervision. The first team to complete
the mission gets served first!
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