One Giant Leap Australia Foundation (One Giant Leap Australia) and Electro Optic Systems (EOS) are offering three high school students a once-in-a lifetime opportunity to receive a partial scholarship, valued at $5,000, to attend Space Tour USA 2024.
The tour will see the young space explorers travelling to the renowned Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama, from 29 October to 10 November 2024. Space Camp, operational for over 42 years, an internationally known program with more than one million alumni is based on NASA astronaut training and focuses on teamwork and leadership skills. One Giant Leap Australia has provided tours to Space Camp since 2015 and the space education organisation is excited to return.
“Successful students will have the cost of their trip substantially reduced thanks to Electro Optic Systems”, said Jackie Carpenter, Director of the One Giant Leap Australia Foundation. “The experience is truly life changing. Students who have attended in the past, who are now adults, still talk about the impact their adventure to Space Camp USA was for them,” said Ms Carpenter. “Now, thanks to EOS we can offer the opportunity to student who might not normally have access to this rare experience.”
Executive Vice President of EOS Space Systems, James Bennett highlighted EOS’ commitment to fostering future talent. “EOS is dedicated to nurturing the next generation of Australian space engineers and scientists. We actively support STEM education through various initiatives including internships, scholarships, and contributions to scholarship programs. We are excited to be supporting Space Tour 2024, which we believe will ignite the students’ imaginations and inspire them to one day embark on careers in the space industry, helping to shape the future of technology and exploration.”
The tour’s itinerary includes visits to Disneyland, California Science Centre, Northrop Grumman, and the Griffith Observatory. The schedule also features a day of STEM activities with One Giant Leap’s USA STEM expert, dinner with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists and engineers, and a visit to Space Camp USA.