Onizuka Space Science Day

Event Info

This FREE annual event honors Astronaut Ellison Onizuka's memory and is dedicated to his dream of inspiring the youth of America to strive for and achieve their career goals.

• Saturday, March 15, 2025 from 8 a.m.-2 p.m.
• El Camino College (Check-in at the Marsee Auditorium)

Registration

Reminders

• Kids may need an adult present to help navigate our large campus.
• RAIN OR SHINE!  Please wear appropriate attire.
• Free lunch for the first 900 students! A variety of fast food options are available across the street for other family members.

Featured Astronaut

Dan Tani

NASA Astronaut (Former) 

 

Dan Tani was born in Pennsylvania, but he considers Lombard, Illinois his hometown. He is married and has three children. Tani enjoys golf, flying, running, tennis, music and cooking. 

Tani received a Bachelor and a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1984 and 1988, respectively. He worked at Hughes Aircraft Corporation in El Segundo as a Design Engineer in the Space and Communications group. He later worked for the Orbital Sciences Corporation as a Flight Operations lead, and then led the development of procedures for the launching of the Pegasus unmanned rocket.

Tani was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1996. STS-108 Endeavour (December 5th - December 12, 2001) was the 12th shuttle flight to visit the International Space Station. Tani served as Mission Specialist 2 during the mission. The mission involved delivering the Expedition 4 crew to the ISS and returning the Expedition 3 crew to Earth. They unloaded more than 3 tons of supplies and science experiments to the ISS. Tani performed a spacewalk to wrap thermal blankets around sensitive equipment on the exterior of the spacecraft.  STS-108 was accomplished in 185 Earth orbits, traveling 4.8 million miles in 283 hours and 36 minutes, including a spacewalk lasting 4 hours and 12 minutes. 

On his second spaceflight, Tani served as Expedition-16 Flight Engineer and spent 120 days living and working aboard the International Space Station. He launched to the Station aboard STS-120 on October 23, 2007, and returned aboard STS-122, landing at Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on February 20, 2008. During his tour of duty aboard the station, he performed numerous robotic operations in support of the installation and checkout of Node-2 and logged a total of 34 hours and 59 minutes during five spacewalks.

Event Features

• Classroom presentations & demonstrations led by ECC professors, students, and guests from NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and other institutions
• Hands-on science activities & experiments
• Egg drop competition!
• Check out the Schedule & list of Breakout Sessions

Important Links

Be prepared for our event by checking out the following links:

• View Directions to El Camino College and explore our interactive campus map.
• Learn more about Ellison Onizuka and the rest of the Challenger crew at the Onizuka Memorial site.

About the Event

The Ellison S. Onizuka Memorial Committee, El Camino College, and Honda sponsor this free, hands-on conference. This year marks the 39th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger accident that took the lives of the seven crew members, including Ellison Onizuka.

Dedication

Onizuka Space Science Day is dedicated to the memory of the seven Challenger astronauts, who on January 28, 1986 lost their lives in pursuit of their dreams.

Francis Scobee, Commander, Washington
Michael Smith, Co-Pilot, North Carolina
Ellison Onizuka, Mission Specialist, Hawaii
Ronald McNair, Mission Specialist, South Carolina
Judith Resnik, Mission Specialist, Ohio
Gregory Jarvis, Payload Specialist, New York
Christa McAuliffe, High School Teacher, New Hampshire

Challenger Astronauts: (left to right, rear row) Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis and Judith Resnik. (left to right, front row) Michael Smith, Dick Scobee and Ronald McNair.

Their courage and ambition continue to inspire us all.

Sponsors

Sponsored by El Camino College, Honda, Chevron, and the El Camino College Foundation

Questions?

Please email spaceday@elcamino.edu.