Like other places of learning in Niagara County, the Niagara Aerospace Museum is getting involved with activities for the April 8 solar eclipse.
The museum set next to the Niagara Falls International Airport will be one of eight partner locations in Niagara County where NASA will host presentations related to the natural phenomenon. It will have eight planned events going on at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. from April 4 through April 7.
Among the presentations include heliophysicist David Cheney talking about the sun, what it takes to launch a rocket, an appearance from a NASA astronaut, and a discussion about Project Artemis, NASA’s next mission to return to the moon. Plenty of kid’s activities with free admission will take place all day each day at the museum.
“This is fantastic for Niagara Falls or local residents to come up, learn a little more, and experience that NASA perspective on things,” said Niagara Aerospace Museum Executive Director Lindsey Lauren Visser.
Museum Board President Don Erwin said that when he saw NASA was coming to the area, he called them and requested they come to the museum.
Niagara Falls itself is no stranger to space travel. The rocket engine used to bring Apollo aircraft back to Earth from the Moon was developed by Bell Aircraft. One of those rockets, along with an Apollo-era mission control console from Houston, is on display.
There will be no activities at the museum or the airport on April 8, since the best viewing spots would be on the tarmac and would be near any airplane traffic.
Attendees are urged to reserve a spot through the museum’s website, with each presentation having a 60-person capacity.
The event schedule for the museum is as follows:
APRIL 4
• 11 a.m. — Putting it all together — Building Blocks to Blastoff! NASA Launch Payload Integration with Launch Site Integration Engineer Josiah Ruelas.
• 2 p.m. — NASA Launch Operations Blueprint to Blastoff: Behind the Scenes of Launching a Rocket with Launch Operations Manager Patrick Renna.
APRIL 5
• 11 a.m. — Putting it all together — Building Blocks to Blastoff! NASA Launch Payload Integration with Launch Site Integration Engineer Josiah Ruelas.
• 2 p.m. — Lunar Space Station with Gateway Deep Space Logistics Studies Manager Bianca M. Rhym.
APRIL 6
• 11 a.m. — NASA Mission Design with Mission Design Engineer Benjamin Asher.
• 2 p.m. — Solar Eclipses from NASA expert David Cheney, the program executive of the Heliophysics Division at NASA Headquarters.
APRIL 7
• 11 a.m. — Striving for the Stars: Return to the Moon with Management and Program Analyst Hunter Goodenow.
• 2 p.m. — NASA Launch Operations Blueprint to Blastoff: Behind the Scenes of Launching a Rocket with Launch Operations Manager Patrick Renna.
APRIL 9
• The museum will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with docents available for tours.