Members of the USNAAA Gulf Coast Chapter participated in a 4-hour, behind-the-scenes, VIP tour of the Johnson Space Center as Invited Guests of the Center Director.

The tour started at Building 4S, with a welcome aboard briefing and video presented by Steve Bowen, USNA ’86.

The next stop was at the Sonny Carter Training Facility to tour the Neutral Buoyancy Lab. There were 2 astronaut candidates underwater, receiving their initial training in extra-vehicular activities EVA. The NBL training is just one of many training exercises that the candidates must successfully complete in order to become fully qualified astronauts. The NBL is a large indoor swimming pool containing full scale mock-ups of various modules of the International Space Station. The pool is 202 feet long, 102 feet wide and 40 feet deep. Underwater training in a simulated EVA suit provides the best on-earth simulation of microgravity operations.

The following stop was at the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility. The tour guide was Daniel Nelson, USNA ’75. The tour group was allowed to enter many of the full scale mockups to better grasp the reach, visibility and tactile operations of spaceflight vehicle and experiments. The SVMF consists of ISS, Orion, Commercial vehicle mockups, part-task trainers and rack interfaces, a Precision Air Bearing Floor, and a Partial Gravity Simulator. The ISS mockups include the U.S. Lab, Nodes, Permanent Multipurpose Module, Joint Airlock, medium-fidelity mockups of the Russian Service Module, SOYUZ, FGB, and several other ISS International Partner modules.

The last stop was at the Mission Control Center. The group was granted access to the VIP viewing room to observe real-time Mission Control of the International Space Station and engaged in a detailed Q&A with the tour guide.

Tour attendees included: Rich Bulger, Rick Bush, Jim Davis, Ed Klein, Carl Inskeep, Tim Wilson, Julius Taylor, LaShaundra Collins and Anna Haschert.

Saturday March 2^nd the Texas Gulf Coast Foundation Sponsored the Southeast Texas Regional SeaPerch Competition. As the sole outside sponsor the foundation was able to provide $10,000 for kits and tool bags delivered to 37 teams to participate in the underwater drone competition. With over 52 teams competing including elementary, middle, and high schools this is the largest underwater drone competition in the area. The competition required the teams to compete in an underwater obstacle course, underwater skill challenge, speed assembly race, and an interview.  The three best individual performances were awarded with full scholarships to the USNA Summer STEM program. Captain Chris Cassidy (’93) provided the keynote speech relating his experiences as a SEAL and Astronaut to the challenges the teams faced during the competition. He even surprised the winning team with a unique gift – Russian space food! Chris Black (’07) led the effort as part of the Texas Gulf Coast Chapter and Foundation’s objective to improve outreach and knowledge of USNA through promotion of STEM activities. The event was a rousing success as over 50 teams and 200 students competed and learned about the world of opportunities USNA provides. The foundation has approved funding and growing this competition for the next four years.  More photos from this event.

Consider donating to the TxGC Foundation.  Your donation goes to programs just like this one and other programs we support here in the Houston area that directly support USNA Admissions and their recruiting efforts.