The Space Race in Southeastern PennsylvaniaA celebration of aerospace heritage in the greater Philadelphia region highlighting early U.S. manned spaceflight history in our backyard!
Saturday, July 20, 2024; 1 to 5 p.m. EDT
The Fuge, Warminster, Pennsylvania
For more information and to register, click here
From the late 1950s through the mid-1960s, NASA used the Johnsville Centrifuge in Warminster, PA for acceleration training (G-force training) for X-15 pilots as well as Project Mercury, Project Gemini (New Nine) and 14 Project Apollo astronauts in preparation for spaceflight.
August 2024 marks the 65th anniversary (August 1959) of Project Mercury astronaut training starting on the Johnsville Centrifuge. Project Mercury was the first U.S. manned spaceflight program and consisted of 7 astronauts — Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom, Scott Carpenter, John Glenn, Wally Schirra, Deke Slayton and Gordon Cooper.
July 20, 2024 is the 55th anniversary of the first lunar landing (July 20, 1969). All 3 of the Apollo 11 crew — Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins — trained on the Johnsville Centrifuge!
As a premier training facility for NASA during the early days of manned spaceflight, the Johnsville Centrifuge played a critical role in preparing our astronauts to win the Space Race.
The greater Philadelphia region is also notable for a rich aerospace heritage beyond the Space Race. Join us on July 20, 2024 to learn more about this unique history!