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About Us

WHO WE ARE

About Space Center Houston 

The Manned Space Flight Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN Tax ID# 76-0217152), is dedicated to inspiring curiosity and fostering a love of science through our comprehensive learning programs and world-class space museum.

At the heart of our mission is Space Center Houston, a premier science and space exploration learning center. As Houston’s leading attraction and the top destination for international visitors in the region, we proudly serve as the Official Visitor Center of NASA Johnson Space Center and a Smithsonian Affiliate.

Since opening our doors in 1992, we’ve welcomed over 26.6 million guests and continue to inspire nearly 1.3 million visitors annually within our 250,000-square-foot educational complex.

Discover over 400 space artifacts, immersive exhibits, and captivating experiences that celebrate the rich history and exciting future of America’s human space-flight program. Our offerings are designed to engage and educate visitors of all ages, sparking wonder and fueling dreams.

ORGANIZATIONAL VISION

Space Center Houston is the world’s leading science and human space exploration and experience STEM learning center. We inspire people to become active contributors along the STEM Pathway. We leverage strategic partnerships, advance STEM education, facilitate research and innovation and continuously inspire and create awe and wonder for our guests who consistently see themselves as an integral part of exploring space.

PURPOSE

To bring people and space closer together

MISSION

To reveal how science and humanity power space exploration

VISION

A world inspired by space exploration

VALUES

We are:

  • Space Enthusiasts
  • People-Driven
  • Champions of Curiosity

Explore Space Center Houston leaders, board & beyond

Accolades & Recognition

Space Center Houston generates annually a $118.7 million economic impact, 1,710 jobs and $53.7 million in personal income in greater Houston, according to a 2018 economic study by Quanticon, LLC researchers Stephen Cotton, PhD, and Jason Murasko.

Explore other accolades the organization and our departments have won as leaders in our field.

Browse our 2023-2027 Strategic Plan

STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK PRIORITIES

  • Science Learning
  • Space Exploration Sector Research & Collections
  • Audience Engagement
  • Enterprise

Innovative STEM education for all ages

We use space exploration to inspire wonder and interest in science and math. Educational emphasis is placed on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in a fun and engaging way.

  • Immersive STEM day camp experiences, including our Explorer Camps and Space U, for young explorers ages 3 to 18.
  • One-of-a-kind programming for educators, such as our Space Educators Exploration Conference (SEEC).
  • STEM mentorship and empowerment programs inspiring young people to choose careers in STEM.
  • Hands-on citizen science opportunities for every single Space Center Houston visitor.
  • And more!

Dive into the story behind NASA Johnson Space Center’s Official Visitors Center

JSC and NASA had a tremendous story to tell. It did not have the place or the resources to tell it. Artifacts and models were displayed in the hallways of the JSC employee auditorium. Hal Stall, director of Public Affairs at JSC, likened it to “displaying the Hope diamond in a shoe box.” Stall wanted to provide real role models for youth, showing them that working hard in math and science classes could pay off with a career as a spacecraft designer or astronaut. And he wanted to do it without using tax dollars.

So Stall gathered leaders from JSC and the community and formed Manned Space Flight Education Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. Together, the group set out to provide a world-class facility where the public could come to touch the space program — and be touched by it.

The Foundation brought in the experts from Walt Disney Imagineering, the design and master planning arm of the Walt Disney Co. Using BRC Imagination Arts as a collaborating designer, Disney generated the concepts that would become Space Center Houston.

The Foundation sought support from corporations. Many companies backed the building of the Center by providing seed money. Finally, $68.4 million in tax-exempt bonds were sold to the public.

Modest admission fees would fund the daily operation of the Center. They would also support the Center’s extensive educational program, which now provides outreach to thousands of school children and teachers.

The construction team, headed by a joint venture of CRSS Sirrine and Linbeck, began construction of the facility. With Walt Disney lmagineering’s and BRC Imagination Arts’ concepts in hand, BRC Imagination Arts began production of the shows and displays. It would be a challenging task – the Center had to entertain and excite, but tell the true story of space in a realistic way.

The goal was a center that appeals on an emotional level as well as an intellectual one. A Center that reaches guests’ minds through their hearts.

The hands-on activities, films, exhibits and live shows do just that.

Established as the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) in 1961, the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) named in honor of the late President, is responsible for the design, development, and operation of human space flight. For more than four decades, JSC has been the world leader in human space flight operations for NASA.

Staff began arriving at the MSC in 1963, and by the summer of 1964 most buildings were operational. Gemini IV was the first flight controlled here, and the MSC became a hub of activity as the Gemini program ended and the Apollo program gained momentum. The Apollo program obtained the national goal, set by President Kennedy in 1961 of landing men on the Moon and returning them safely within the decade of the 1960’s.

The eyes of the world were on Houston and the MSC on July 20, 1969 as Neil Armstrong reported from the lunar surface, “Houston, the Eagle has landed.” Hours later, Armstrong descended the ladder of the Lunar Module (LM)”Eagle” proclaiming, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind” as he took his historic first steps on the Moon’s surface. Later, in 1973, the MSC was renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) and has been the heart of the manned space flight program ever since. Controlling flights from Gemini, Apollo, Skylab and the Apollo-Soyuz through the current Shuttle program is the responsibility of JSC scientists, engineers, astronauts and other staff members.

JSC is the Training base and home for our nation’s astronauts and the site of Mission Control, where a talented cadre of flight controllers monitors the work of our women and men in space. The operations as JSC include the development, production and delivery of the Space Shuttle orbiters; the testing of spacecraft associated systems; the development and integration of experiments for human space flight activities; supporting scientific engineering and medical research; the selection and training of astronauts and the operation of human space flights.

For more information about the Johnson Space Center, please visit the official NASA website.

THE CLOSEST THING TO SPACE ON EARTH ™

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Moon 2 Mars Festival is back!

Tickets on sale now | March 13 - 16

The All-American Rejects are throwing Space Center Houston’s Moon 2 Mars Festival into hyperdrive. Amp up your Space City Spring Break with us!

Access to this all-ages festival is included in general admission.