YURIS NIGHT

Yuri’s Night under Space Shuttle Atlantis brings together diverse communities to ignite curiosity, foster participatory exploration, and further the understanding and benefit of human spaceflight in society using accessible means and inclusive programming.

In 2020, most local gatherings were cancelled due to public health concerns surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. Given our mission to spread inspiration and connection, we are creating an online livestream on Saturday, April 11, 2020. We are excited to use this opportunity to connect the world in celebration during this time of uncertainty and isolation. The event will be open for anyone to access with multiple hosts and guests giving fun and insightful discussions about space-related topics.

The Cosmic Odyssey Scholarship sends families affected by pediatric cancer to incredible, all-expenses-paid trip to custom Family Space Camp weekends in Huntsville, AL. The scholarship was conceived by Niko Blanks, a childhood cancer survivor himself as well as a four-time Space Camp attendee. Niko found Space Camp to be a place where he renewed his confidence and passion for space exploration. This program is made possible through donations and a partnership with the Austin Hatcher Foundation for Pediatric Cancer.

Mission: AstroAccess will launch a group of disabled scientists, veterans, students, athletes, and artists on a historic parabolic flight with the Zero Gravity Corporation (ZERO-G) as the first step in a progression toward flying a diverse range of people to space. These “AstroAccess Ambassadors” will experience weightlessness and carry out lunar gravity, Martian gravity, and zero gravity observations and experiments investigating how the physical environment aboard space vessels should be modified so that all astronauts and explorers, regardless of disability on Earth, can live, work, and thrive in space. AstroAccess Ambassadors will not only participate in a parabolic flight, but will use their platform to act as public advocates for global disability access in STEM.

Our first parabolic flight will fly on ZERO-G on October 17, 2021, with the ultimate goal of flying one or more team members to space in the coming years. This project is being initially supported through The Whitesides Foundation and is part of the SciAccess Initiative, a collaborative international effort dedicated to advancing disability inclusion in STEM.