SpaceFest, Kitt Peak, Lowell Observatory, Meteor Crater

Gene Cernan & myself

I attended SpaceFest IV, in Tucson, Arizona, which took place 1-3rd June 2012. Guests included many of the Apollo astronauts, some shuttle astronauts, mission specialists and principal investigators of space missions, along with other space media personalities. There were three tracks of talks and meals with the astronauts.

Back: Buzz Aldrin, Al Worden, Richard Gordon, Charlie Walker, Paul Weitz, Gene Cernan
 Front: Alan Bean, Dave Scott, Walt Cunningham, Jack Lousma, Fred Haise, Ed Mitchell
Vance Brand, Ed Gibson, Dale Cox,Tom Jones, Mike Mullane

We arrived a few days early and enjoyed tours to Mount Lemmon, Biosphere 2 and the telescope mirror lab at the University of Arizona.  After SpaceFest, we managed to visit Lowell Observatory, where Pluto was discovered, Meteor Crater, Kitt Peak Observatory and the Pima Air and Space Museum.

The event was overwhelmingly amazing. I co-wrote some articles with Nick Howes, science writer for ESA and Programme Manager for the Faulkes Telescope, which can be read in the next issue of "Popular Astronomy", which you can obtain by joining the Society for Popular Astronomy for just £18.00.