Touch the Moon in Nebraska This Month

Nebraskans will have the rare chance to touch a piece of a moon rock throughout the month of September in NASA’s Driven to Explore mobile exhibit. Driven to Explore offers a look at NASA’s newest space exploration program, Constellation, designed to return humans to the moon and travel beyond.

The exhibit will be at the following locations:

— Nebraska State Fair, Lincoln, NE, Fri., Sept. 4 through Sun., Sept. 6, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. CDT daily, Mon., Sept. 7, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. CDT

— Humboldt Table Rock Steinaur Schools, Humboldt, NE, Wed. Sept. 9 through Thurs., Sept. 10, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT daily

— Omaha Children’s Museum, Omaha, NE, Sat., Sept. 12, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. CDT, Sun., Sept. 13, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. CDT

— University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, Tues. Sept. 15 through Wed., Sept. 16, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. CDT daily

— Edgerton Explorit Center, Aurora, NE, Fri., Sept. 18 through Sat., Sept. 19, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT daily

The lunar rock sample was collected in 1972 by the astronauts of Apollo 17, America’s last human mission to the moon. The almost 4-billion-year-old rock is one of only eight lunar samples in the world made available for the public to touch and feel.

As NASA celebrates the 40th anniversary of the first human lunar landing, Driven to Explore allows visitors to see models of the Constellation Program’s rockets and spacecraft being developed and to learn how and why America will return to the moon. The exhibit also details the accomplishments of the space shuttle and the International Space Station.

For more information about the Constellation Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

For information about the Apollo 40th lunar landing anniversary, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/40th/