Latest news with #GretchenGreen
Forbes
12-06-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Two Astronauts On Why You Should Visit Space Camp In Huntsville
These 2 became real astronauts after attending Space Camp as kids. If you're seeking a travel experience that sparks your imagination and immerses you in the past, present, and future of space exploration, consider visiting Huntsville, Alabama. Known as Rocket City, this vibrant Southern hub is home to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center—and, more importantly, to the legendary Space Camp. This is not a museum where you walk through exhibits and read plaques (though it does have one of the most impressive collections of space artifacts in the country). Space Camp is an experience—a hands-on, high-energy, simulator-filled adventure where guests of all ages can step into the boots of astronauts, engineers, and mission commanders. For kids, it's a chance to dream big. For adults, it's an opportunity to reconnect with childhood wonder, push limits, and learn something new. And for some, like Dr. Gretchen Green and Aymette Medina Jorge, it's a starting point for an actual journey to space. Both women flew aboard Blue Origin's recent NS-32 mission. Both trace their achievements back to Space Camp. Gretchen Green was just 12 years old when she first arrived in Huntsville in 1986. She would return three more times, eventually becoming a camp counselor. Today, she's not only a practicing radiologist and entrepreneur—she's also a board member of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Foundation. The trajectory from camper to astronaut is not something she takes lightly. 'It felt like a magical place—where kids like me could step into roles usually reserved for adults and dive into big, complex ideas,' she says. 'At Space Camp, I told my counselor I wanted to be a mission commander. It was outside my comfort zone—but I wanted to lead.' She did, and she thrived, eventually earning awards like Outstanding Trainee and the Right Stuff Award. That mindset—of volunteering before you're ready, asking questions, and stepping into leadership—has stayed with her throughout her life and career. While Green always dreamed of space, her path took a practical turn. She became a physician and didn't discover radiology, a tech-heavy, physics-driven specialty, until medical school. When the field's famously difficult physics exam loomed, she remembered her time at Space Camp. 'If science could get humans to the moon,' she thought, 'I could learn the physics I needed.' Aymette Medina Jorge, a public school teacher from Texas, discovered Space Camp later in life through an educator program. Since then, she has brought groups of students year after year, sharing the same formative experiences that helped inspire her own career. Like Green, Jorge also joined the Blue Origin NS-32 crew, becoming part of the growing wave of civilian space travelers who first dared to dream in Huntsville. It all started at Space Camp. 'They need to go and visit Space Camp,' she says of families and travelers considering a trip. 'It's part of your path to go to space. There were a lot of things I got from Space Camp that I am applying in my classroom right now.' She says the training helped her better translate STEM ideas into engaging activities for her students—and it gave her a new language for discussing space careers in ways that feel accessible and relatable. Arriving in Huntsville, visitors are greeted by a towering Saturn V rocket that looms beside the highway like a monolith of American achievement. Inside the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, guests encounter everything from moon rocks and Apollo spacecraft to a newly redesigned Rocket Park that visually walks visitors through decades of space history. The recently restored Pathfinder shuttle is a striking photo op, and the Training Center's simulators make it easy to imagine yourself in a real launch scenario—even the mission control rooms buzz with purpose, not unlike the actual NASA facilities they emulate. For Green, returning to the campus today is deeply personal. Her daughter—also a Space Camp alum—recently had the chance to interview the Polaris Dawn crew in front of campers. 'It was a full-circle moment,' Green says. 'That spirit of exploration, community, and generosity is alive and well—and it's what makes Space Camp so much more than just a place. It's a launchpad for life.' Jorge describes the arrival even more viscerally. 'You are automatically going to be transported to space,' she says. 'When you see all the rockets in place, you think, 'Am I in a launchpad, and we're ready to go up?' You feel that energy, that enthusiasm, that good vibe. You know, 'I am in the right place to go to space right now.'' Today, the center offers programs for children, families, adults, and educators—each with varying levels of intensity, simulation, and training. The Adult Space Academy is especially popular with curious travelers, space enthusiasts, and even corporate teams seeking a leadership reset. And 2025, designated Alabama's Year of Aviation, offers even more incentive to visit, with special exhibits and restored aircraft, including the T-38, SR-71 Blackbird, and F-14 Tomcat, adding depth to the experience. After returning from space, both Green and Jorge spoke of how seeing Earth from above shifted their perspectives forever. 'To see the Earth from space changes your perspective,' Jorge says. 'You see this infinite black, and you see the Earth with that halo around it with this blue that is so beautiful. You realize two things. First, the greatness of God. And second, that the planet is so fragile. We have to take care of our home.' For Green, the experience was both a culmination and a beginning. 'Going to space was the hardest goal I could imagine—and achieving it brought a joy that touches everything I do now. My kids were inspired to see me work so hard toward what some might call an impossible dream—and succeed.' Whether you want to explore aviation history, rediscover your inner adventurer, or plant a seed of curiosity in the next generation, Huntsville's Space Camp is more than a vacation destination. It's a story you step into—and maybe one that changes your life. As Green puts it: 'Whether you want to become an astronaut or pursue any bold purpose, Space Camp helps you believe in your ability to rise to the challenge.' And sometimes, that belief is all it takes to reach the stars.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Blue Origin completes 12th human flight to space
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Space technology company Blue Origin successfully completed its 12th human spaceflight and the 32nd flight for the New Shepard program on Saturday morning, May 31. The launch took place from the company's facility outside of Van Horn and took a human crew to the Karman line, the internationally recognized boundary of space. The crew included: K-12 STEM teacher Aymette Medina Jorge; radiologist turned explorer Dr. Gretchen Green; former Panamanian ambassador to the United States Jaime Alemán; businessman Jesse Williams; aerospace executive Mark Rocket; and entrepreneur Paul Jeris. Including Saturday's crew, New Shepard has now flown 64 people into space — including four who have flown twice — among them scientific researchers, educators, physicians, explorers, and entrepreneurs. 'We thank our customers for trusting us to give them the opportunity to appreciate Earth's fragility from above, an experience that truly transforms those who embark on it,' said Phil Joyce, senior vice president of New Shepard. 'We look forward to seeing what our remarkable crew will do with this experience. I am proud of our team's dedication in making these moments possible.' Here is what Blue Origin said about the New Shepard program: 'Named after astronaut Alan Shepard, the first American in space, New Shepard is Blue Origin's fully reusable, autonomous suborbital rocket system built to fly humans and scientific payloads to space. The rocket is powered by one BE-3PM engine, which is fueled by a highly efficient and clean combination of liquid hydrogen and oxygen. During flight, the only byproduct of New Shepard's engine combustion is water vapor, with no carbon emissions.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
31-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Blue Origin launches 6 passengers on sub-orbital trip to the edge of space
An international crew of four men and two women blasted off and rocketed to the edge of space Saturday, enjoying a few minutes of weightlessness and an out-of-this-world view before plunging back to Earth to wrap up Blue Origin's twelfth New Shepard passenger flight. "It was such an incredible ride, very moving, very spiritual," Panamanian attorney Jaime Alemán, a former ambassador to the United States, said after landing. "Even better than I ever imagined. I've been traveling, thanks to the gods, all my life, this was like the cherry on top of a cake. I mean, to go up in space and see how huge it is, you can only begin to imagine how much more there is still to discover." he New Shepard rocket and crew capsule climb away from Blue Origin's West Texas launch site on the company's 12th crewed sub-orbital space flight. Blue Origin webcast Blue Origin's hydrogen-fueled single-stage booster roared to life at 9:39 a.m. EDT and quickly climbed away from the company's West Texas launch site, accelerating to just over 2,000 mph before releasing the New Shepard spacecraft. The crew capsule, equipped with the largest windows of any operational spaceship, continued coasting up to an altitude of nearly 65 miles, just above the internationally recognized boundary between the discernible atmosphere and space, before beginning the descent to landing. At the moment the capsule was released, its three American passengers — Aymette Medina Jorge, Gretchen Green and Paul Jeris — along with Alemán, Canadian Jesse Williams and New Zealand's Mark Rocket, began enjoying about three minutes of weightlessness as they coasted upwards. The New Shepard single-stage rocket flew itself back to landing near its launch pad for refurbishment and work to ready the vehicle for its next flight. Blue Origin webcast The reusable New Shepard booster, meanwhile, also continued upward before slowing and beginning its on tail-first descent. Seven minutes after liftoff, the rocket's BE-3 engine re-ignited, four landing legs deployed and the booster settled to a picture-perfect touchdown on a landing pad near the launch site. The gumdrop-shaped New Shepard capsule took a more leisurely flight home, descending under three large parachutes to touchdown in the West Texas desert 10 minutes after liftoff. "You guys, we did it!" one of the passengers exclaimed. Passenger Gretchen Green celebrates her trip to space after touchdown in the West Texas desert. Blue Origin webcast Blue Origin has now launched 12 passenger flights since the sub-orbital spacecraft carried Amazon- and Blue Origin-founder Jeff Bezos and three others aloft in July 2021. The company has now launched 68 passengers, including four who have flown twice. Blue Origin and its passengers do not reveal how much it costs to fly aboard a New Shepard, but it's estimated to cost upwards of $500,000 per seat. Jorge's seat was sponsored by Farmacias Similares, a Mexican company focused on accessible healthcare across Latin America. Her crewmates presumably paid for their own tickets. Blue Origin has had the sub-orbital passenger market to itself since June 2024 when competitor Virgin Galactic, founded by entrepreneur Richard Branson, retired its original rocketplane to focus on building two upgraded Delta-class spacecraft. Virgin is expected to resume flights next year.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Two Space Camp Alumnae on board Blue Origin's next launch
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — If you're looking for something out of this world to do this weekend, look no further. Tomorrow, The U.S. Space & Rocket Center is celebrating the launch of Blue Origin's New Shepard-32 mission with a blue-themed launch party. Our friend and CEO of the Space & Rocket Center, Dr. Kimberly Robinson joined us on Day to Day Friday with more on the launch and how the center plans to celebrate another historic flight. Saturday, May 31 beginning at 8 a.m. Blue Origin's human-crewed suborbital flight will have Space Camp alumnae Dr. Gretchen Green and Aymette (Amy) Medina Jorge on board. The launch party takes place in the 'Dare to Explore: Frontiers of Space' exhibit where Blue Origin's BE-3U and BE-4 engines are on display. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
