Our Species in Space!
“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” The famous astronaut who said this quote while becoming the first man to walk on the moon, also insisted that an ‘a’ between ‘for’ and ‘man’ was lost in the live broadcast.
Who was Neil Armstrong?
The first space station built, maintained, and crewed by an international coalition, it was launched in 1998 and has had a continuous human presence aboard since 2000.
What is the ISS?
The large and in charge center of our Solar System, this star came into existence approximately 4.6 billion years ago and has had many deities based on it.
What is the Sun?
Back to back NBA champions in the 1994 and 1995 seasons, this team has played host to famous centers like Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon and Yao Ming.
Who are the Houston Rockets?
This modified Corellian YT-1300 is famous for its speed, being said to be able to make the Kessel Run in under 12 parsecs. The ship has also been described, and later parodied, as the space ship equivalent of a Winnebago.
What is the Millennium Falcon?
This astronomer, born in Goshen, CT in 1829, discovered Mars's moons, Deimos and Phobos.
Who was Asaph Hall III?
The second man to walk on the moon, and the namesake of a particular toy in the Toy Story franchise, this astronaut has spent his long life advocating for space travel and STEM education.
Who is Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin?
This revolutionary space bound observatory has captured many high resolution images of deep space, helped determine that the universe is 13.7 billion years old, and is continuously used in the study of dark matter.
What is the Hubble Telescope?
Follow this star wherever you are and it'll always take you in a particular direction. The star, while famously used for navigation, is also known for being the tip of the handle for the Little Dipper.
What is Polaris aka the North Star?
A basketball team without a championship to their name, they've been to the NBA finals 3 times in 1976, 1993, and 2021, but have lost each appearance in six games.
Who are the Phoenix Suns?
This name, given to 8 different starships serving the United Federation of Planets from 2245 to 2402 and beyond, is also the name of the real world's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier.
What is the USS Enterprise?
Born and raised in South Windsor, CT, this NASA astronaut is currently serving on the ISS and is his crew’s pilot.
Who is Jack Hathaway?
The first man in space, in 1961 this Soviet cosmonaut orbited the Earth in his ship, the Vostok 1. His last name was used as the title for a 2020 French film, whose main character shares his first name.
Who was Yuri Gagarin?
The first artificial satellite to orbit Earth, this 184 pound metal object was launched in late 1957 completing 1,440 orbits going 18,000 miles per hour before burning up as it reentered the atmosphere in early 1958.
What is Sputnik 1?
The brightest star in the night sky, it's located in the Canis Major system. It’s also the name of a US based radio company.
What is Sirius aka the Dog Star?
This MLB team has won 2 championships, though they were embroiled in controversy for one of them. The team was first named the Colt .45s for a few years before rebranding to the space themed moniker they currently have.
Who are the Houston Astros?
Larger on the inside, this ship is often disguised as a blue British police box.
What is the TARDIS?
Born in Farmington, CT, this astronaut has spent the fourth most time in space of any American woman.
Who is Kathleen Rubins?
The first woman in space, in 1963 she piloted her shuttle, the Vostok 6, around the Earth 48 times, spending just under 3 days in orbit.
Who is Valentina Tereshkova?
A series of satellites that aid in mapping the Earth, these objects occupy positions 20,000KM in a grid like pattern. They play a pivotal role for any service that provides directions.
What is the GPS Constellation?
This red giant star is the fourth brightest in the night sky, with its name meaning “Guardian of the Bear”. Its name also shares a prefix with the word arctic.
What is Arcturus?
Formerly known as the Connecticut Sun, this WNBA team was recently purchased by an ownership group for 300 million dollars. The team will be moved elsewhere, and is taking on the name of a franchise that was active from 1997-2008 and won 4 WNBA championships in that time.
Who are the Houston Comets?
An incredibly long space ship sporting a bumper sticker reading “WE BRAKE FOR NOBODY”, it features a zoo, pizzeria, mall, and three ring circus on board. Most notably though is the ships ability to transform into the imposing Mega Maid, who wields a vacuum capable of both sucking up and blowing out air.
What is Spaceball One?
Born in Waterbury, CT, this physicist and naturalist traveled the world collecting a wide range of artifacts, some of which are on display in places like the Smithsonian and UCONN.
Who was William Wood?
This astronaut holds the record for the most cumulative time spent in space, an astonishing 1,111 days, which is a bit over 3 total years.
Who is Oleg Kononeko?
Launched by NASA in 1960, this was the world's first successful weather satellite. Though it functionally only lasted for 2 and a half months it transmitted over 19,000 usable images that would go on to help revolutionize storm tracking. Despite an electrical failure taking it offline, the object is still orbiting the Earth to this day.
What is TIROS-1?
A massive reddish supergiant, if this star were where our Sun is it would occupy a space well past Jupiter. This star could go supernova sometime in the next 100,000 years, and its name is close in pronunciation to a famous 80’s horror comedy movie and character.
What is Betelgeuse?
Wrangling in space, this MLB AAA minor league team has a peculiar name inspired by wild west outlaws, the suburb of Houston it's based in, and you guessed it, SPACE!
Who are the Sugar Land Space Cowboys?
The first ship to make use of an Infinite Improbability Drive, it was stolen by former President of the Galaxy and current intergalactic criminal Zaphod Beeblebrox. It's been seen in film and TV as well as described in a book, but has never had a consistent appearance between any of these media.
What is the Heart of Gold?
Born in Goshen, CT, this scientist was the first to discover the insulating effect of certain gasses, including carbon dioxide, and her research would be used as the first building block of what we now call the Greenhouse Effect.
Who was Eunice Newton Foote?