The second day of Space Camp was very full (prepare yourself for a mountain of pictures). It was the only entire day of the camp (Friday and Sunday were both half days). It consisted of two missions, one of which lasted two hours, rocket building, a museum tour, and IMAX movie, and riding the multi-axis trainer. Day two really was so much fun and i couldn’t possibly write down all the cool experiences I had but here is an attempt. :)

Those star-shaped hashbrowns GIVE ME LIFE

Waiting for pre-mission training after bfast.

Then we headed over to the mission floor which is right next to the cafeteria to train for our second mission (Bravo Mission) training. For this mission I wanted to be in mission control. My plan was to try out each of the three areas (shuttle, mission control, and ISS). I chose to be Mission Scientist for mission control \m/ This was super fun because my job was to just monitor everything going on on the ISS: make sure the astronauts were doing the correct activities at the right time and to answer their questions, and most importantly to fix any anomalies within the ISS system. the anomalies were a bit confusing to learn at first. there’s a big binder full of all sorts of issues that might arise and during training I had to practice how to find the anomaly in the binder and pretty much decode the instructions. By the end of mission training I felt like a pro.

Awkwardly Training

After training we went back to the cafeteria to make our mission patch. We brainstormed as a team and decided to use our three words from the team building activities (Knowledge, Trust, Integrity). Then we pretty much outlined ideas until we came up with a good patch. 

Free time was next and Tiffany and I wanted to go and try and ride some of the rides outside. the big one was closed but we did end up going on the g-force ride, and it was pretty fun. we ended up getting back for the mission a bit late, but so was everyone else so it wasn’t too bad.

It was finally time for our mission! by this time I was actually excited about another mission. Bravo mission went by super fast and I think that was partly because I was just sitting in a chair and looking at a monitor feed of the ISS for half the time. Just like watching tv. haha. Half the time I forgot to look for the red warning sign of anomalies until the ISS crew were waving a red sign at the camera to get my attention. One of the anomalies was that there was an oxygen shortage and I had to give instructions on how to fix that. the best part about the anomaly binder was that all the instructions were in flow chart form <3

And then, as a reward for the successful mission, lunch.

Pro-tip: Skip the sandwich and just load up on fries, salad, and pizza

After lunch it was time for more training. For Charlie Mission I was to be in the ISS as the ISS Commander! This was exciting because it pretty much meant that I was in charge haha. during training we looked at all the possible experiments that could be done on the ISS, learned about all the different buttons and switches, and learned how to do the ISS space walk. We finished before the rest of the others training in mission control and on the shuttle, it was that easy.

Next, we headed over to the IMAX to see a movie. we were scheduled to see a space themed show but for some reason they showed a WWII show but it was still okay. I was kind of disappointed though.

We then walked over to the Davidson Center for a tour. The tour was kind of long but very interesting. We were given a detailed story/description/explanation of the Saturn V. It was so cool to just walk right under the Saturn V was we learned about each part and definitely helped to understand the awe of the rocket. This was Tiffany’s and My second time in this part of the museum and we could have come back even more it was just so fun.

That reflection tho

I DONT KNOW but this is the only pic of the Saturn V and me

<3 <3 <3

The next 30 minutes was an elective time and we went back to the HAB to rest and so that I could get my phone charger, as my phone was pretty much dead and wouldn’t last the rest of the day. by the time we got there, used the bathroom, and took a breathe, it was time to leave so i ended up taking my phone charger into mission control and just charging it in the first outlet I saw. haha.

It was finally time for our third (and last) mission: Charlie Mission, and this one was going to be two hours long. out of all the areas I’d been in I am glad that I spent the two hour mission in the ISS. I just got to mess around and pretend I was an astronaut working on the ISS for the whole time. The one downfall was that my job did not include doing a space walk like my other crew members. This was okay though because I was on the other end of the anomaly fun this time. I got to follow instructions from mission control and flip switches and do everything that needed to be done to fix the problems that arose during the duration of the mission. Also, i did like, four science experiments. technically we were supposed to keep a log of all the results but half way through the mission I went rogue and just “floated” around the ISS and created my own medical anomalies while the mission scientist at mission control patched me over to medical. haha it was kind of hilarious.

The best ISS Commander

Experimenting with glue - at this point there was a lack of ingredients so I was just pouring glue into water haha!

DINNER! After Charlie mission was soooo hungry. We got in line behind all the kids that were there and waited patiently for food. the meal was pretty good, as always. I’m not picky.

After dinner we walked down some random hallways in Hab 2 until we found ourselves in a classroom type room filled with rocket building materials. following our trainer, will, we made some rockets! I’d done this many times in my past so it felt really natural and fun. Honestly this was one of my favorite parts about space camp for some reason. theres something i just love love love about rockets.

I have about five really good pictures from the rocket making but I decided that one is sufficient enough + I look super proud of myself in this picture and I love it.

We then walked over to the Astrotrek building. We were early for the next activity so we used the free time to finish up our team patch design.

The final activity of the day was the Multi Axis Trainer (MAT). I was kind of nervous about this one because I didn’t want to take off my glasses. Also I wasn’t sure how to react once I was on the MAT, because everyone was watching and I was a bit stage-frightened. It all worked out and i had an amazing time. I ended up being one of the last people to go so I felt really prepared, mentally, by the time I went up. I wish I could’ve spent so much time riding the MAT.

Pre-MAT: glasses secured, hair tied, brave face

And then it was the end of the day. We walked back to our room in Hab 2 and hung out with Jenn for a while and talked about the day and all the fun we had. It was so nice to just relax and laugh and have fun at the end of the day. and then bed!

It wouldn't be camp without making a bunk bed fort

The second day of Space Camp was really fun. The amount of activities they bunch into one day is amazing. From the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed there is something to do. Honestly this day was what I’d always dreamed of as a kid and I’m so glad I finally got to experience a full day of nonstop fun. There were moments when I felt ridiculous “why am i, an adult, here doing this hilarious fake space mission and pretending i’m an astronaut” but once I pushed those thoughts away I had so much un-ironic fun.

My Space Camp Experience:
Day 1- blog post // video
Day 2- blog post // video
Day 3- blog post // video