Friday, Rebecca and I had lunch at the Colorado Springs Challenger Center with “second-generation” astronaut and computer game pioneer Richard Garriott, as well as several representatives from the Austin (TX) school district.  Richard has long been a supporter of the Challenger Learning Centers, and was one of the original designers.  (He’s mentioned in the acknowledgments of Star Challengers: Moonbase Crisis, and this was our chance to give him an autographed copy.)  Richard spent two weeks aboard the International Space Station as a civilian in space.  He is a pioneering game developer, explorer, adventurer, award-winning entrepreneur, and global ambassador for the privatization of space travel.  Read more about his time aboard the International Space Station at http://www.richardinspace.com/

Kevin, Richard Garriott, Rebecca at the Colorado Springs Challenger Learning Center

As we finished our casual lunch and gave some books for the Austin School District, the school buses pulled up with a class of students from the Lyons, Colorado Middle School who had arrived for a field trip, a Challenger Center simulation of a comet mission.  We observed the students at their stations as they went through the adventure.

For more information on the international network of Challenger Centers for Space Science Education, see the main website, http://www.challenger.org/