The Astronomical Society of the Pacific’s 120th anniversary celebration and annual meeting was held in the San Francisco Bay area in early September 2009, co-sponsored by NASA, Northrop Grumman, Ball Aerospace, University of Chicago Press and Capitol College, among others.
The theme of the 2009 gathering, "Science Education and Outreach: Forging a Path to the Future," prompted many representatives from Capitol College to travel to California, including Dr. Michael G. Gibbs, vice president for advancement and director of the college’s Space Science Education and Public Outreach Center. Other presenters were Dave Wagner, director of the Space Operations Institute, Ken Dolan, director of SOI operations, Professor Angela Walters, associate professor of astronautical engineering and technology manager for the SOI, and Julio Marius of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, a pivotal figure in the NASA/Capitol College partnership.
During the conference, Professor Walters presented “NASA/Capitol College Space Operations Institute Project: A Problem Based Learning Approach,” a lecture focused on the benefits of the Capitol College partnership with NASA, and the SOI’s proven problem-based approach to learning and teaching. Dr. Gibbs also lectured on “Capitol College Center for Space Science Education and Public Outreach: Providing STEM Education.” All Capitol representatives provided a poster session entitled “Advancing the Future of STEM Workforce Development: The Capitol College Space Operations Institute.”
Among other presenters was NASA astronaut John Grunsfeld, who shared his experience regarding his fifth space shuttle flight and third visit to the Hubble Space Telescope as part of the STS-125 mission aboard shuttle Atlantis. During the mission, Dr. Grunsfeld performed three of the mission's five space walks that installed two new instruments, repaired two others, and outfitted the HST with new batteries, gyroscopes, fine guidance sensors and thermal blankets.