{"id":17879,"date":"2019-11-16T01:21:33","date_gmt":"2019-11-15T17:21:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/kid-friendly-lunar-rover-takes-the-spotlight-in-the-city-where-moon-buggies-were-born\/"},"modified":"2019-11-16T01:21:33","modified_gmt":"2019-11-15T17:21:33","slug":"kid-friendly-lunar-rover-takes-the-spotlight-in-the-city-where-moon-buggies-were-born","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/kid-friendly-lunar-rover-takes-the-spotlight-in-the-city-where-moon-buggies-were-born\/","title":{"rendered":"Kid-friendly lunar rover takes the spotlight in the city where moon buggies were born"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_533172\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-533172\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-533172\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-pair-630x420.jpg\" alt=\"Lunar rover replica\" width=\"630\" height=\"420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-pair-630x420.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-pair-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-pair-1260x840.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-533172\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleven-year-old Chanel Lam gets some tips on moon-buggy driving from Charlie Martin, a retired Boeing employee who worked on the Apollo-era lunar rovers. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>KENT, Wash. \u2014 The City of Kent\u2019s newest lunar rover wouldn\u2019t stand up to the radiation-blasted conditions on the surface of the moon, but it\u2019s designed to endure a testing ground that\u2019s nearly as harsh: a park playground.<\/p>\n<p>A kid-friendly reproduction of the moon buggies that transported astronauts around the lunar surface during the Apollo 15, 16 and 17 missions of 1971-1972 had its unveiling on Thursday night here at the Accesso Showare Center, which more typically plays host to the Seattle Thunderbirds\u2019 hockey games.<\/p>\n<p>Boeing historian and archivist Mike Lombardi says the rover is a slapshot score.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo thumbs up,\u201d he told GeekWire. \u201cIt\u2019s a wonderful replica.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s high praise, considering that Boeing built and tested the real-life lunar rovers for NASA in Kent. Three of the two-seated contraptions are still sitting on the lunar surface, and won landmark status from King County in July by virtue of their Kent connection. State historical status is due to be sought for the rovers next March.<\/p>\n<p>There are a few test models of the rovers on display at museums around the world, including Seattle\u2019s Museum of Flight. But no one would dare try sitting on those artifacts. In contrast, Kent\u2019s rover replica, built by Minnesota-based Cre8Play at a cost of almost $125,000, is designed to be climbed over.<\/p>\n<p>The rover, as well as a playground lunar lander and an astronaut photo-op mannequin, are to be installed in Kherson Park, a half-acre plot of city land that\u2019s due for renovation.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: 0;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/embed?pb=!1m14!1m8!1m3!1d10806.368940919338!2d-122.2361419!3d47.3808765!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x0%3A0xcad4afdc57ca4b49!2sKherson%20Park!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1573804010289!5m2!1sen!2sus\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Kent Mayor Dana Ralph told GeekWire that the cost of renovation is estimated at $1.25 million. There\u2019s a fundraising campaign underway to cover the expense, led by the Kent Downtown Partnership and the City of Kent. Thursday night\u2019s news was that the Kent Lions Club is donating $10,000 to the cause. If the campaign meets expectations, the moon-themed park could open by 2022, the 50th anniversary of Apollo 17\u2019s last moon buggy ride.<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, backers of the effort plan to display the rover replica indoors.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe lunar rover is about celebrating where we came from, and inspiring us about where we\u2019re going,\u201d Ralph said. \u201cSo between Boeing and companies like Blue Origin, we\u2019re covering 50 years of space exploration.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ralph sees a lot of significance in the fact that Blue Origin, the space venture founded by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, is headquartered in Kent. \u201cThey\u2019re going back to the moon, and they\u2019re going to be doing that with kids who are hopefully inspired by this history,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<style>.fotorama1782799878671 .fotorama__nav--thumbs .fotorama__nav__frame{\npadding:2px;\nheight:64px}\n.fotorama1782799878671 .fotorama__thumb-border{\nheight:60px;\nborder-width:2px;\nmargin-top:2px}<\/style>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-unveil3-1260x715.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 704.895px; height: 400px; left: 47.5524px; top: 0px;\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\tBoeing retirees and other VIPs pull the wraps off a lunar rover replica as Kent Mayor Dana Ralph and members of a Star Wars costuming group look on. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle)<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-mural-1260x798.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 631.579px; height: 400px; left: 84.2105px; top: 0px;\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\tA mural at Kent\u2019s Accesso Showare Center traces the rovers\u2019 history. (GeekWire Photo)<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-back-1260x1056.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 477.273px; height: 400px; left: 161.364px; top: 0px;\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\tJake and Emily Hawken of Kent, Wash., take pictures of their kids as they sit at the controls of the lunar rover replica. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle)<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-unveil3-1260x715.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 113px; height: 64.123px; left: 0px; top: -0.0615079px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-back-1260x1056.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 76.3636px; height: 64px; left: -0.181818px; top: 0px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191115-astronaut.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 97.4275px; height: 64px; left: -0.213755px; top: 0px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-display2.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 109.255px; height: 64px; left: -0.127383px; top: 0px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/190722-rover2-1260x961.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 84px; height: 64.0667px; left: 0px; top: -0.0333333px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191114-rover-mural-1260x798.jpg\" class=\"fotorama__img\" style=\"width: 101.053px; height: 64px; left: -0.0263158px; top: 0px;\"><\/p>\n<p>More than 500 people, including lots of families with kids, showed up for Thursday\u2019s rover unveiling. When they weren\u2019t taking turns sitting in the rover\u2019s seats, youngsters checked out FIRST Robotics\u2019 mini-rovers and browsed booths staffed by the Museum of Flight, Pacific Science Center, Washington Hyperloop, Boeing, the Seattle Astronomical Society and other tech-centric groups.<\/p>\n<p>Blue Origin set up a table where kids could fill out \u201cClub for the Future\u201d postcards that\u2019ll be flown to space and returned. One of the stars of the show was Greg \u201cRay J\u201d Johnson, a Seattle native who served as a shuttle astronaut and now heads Blue Origin\u2019s New Shepard suborbital space program.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson said he\u2019s \u201call in\u201d on the inspirational value of Kent\u2019s rover celebration.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m excited to see kids sit on the rover, because nobody got to sit on a rover except those astronauts,\u201d he said. \u201cThe fact that you build a rover you can put out in the Seattle weather, and then sit on? I mean, it turns the kids\u2019 imagination on fire.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Eleven-year-old Chanel Lam gets some tips on moon-buggy driving from Charlie Martin, a retired Boeing employee who worked on the Apollo-era lunar rovers. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle) KENT, Wash. \u2014 The City of Kent\u2019s newest lunar rover wouldn\u2019t stand up to the radiation-blasted conditions on the surface of the moon, but it\u2019s designed to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4502,4645,625],"class_list":["post-17879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-kent","tag-lunar-rovers","tag-moon"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17879"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17879"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17879\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17879"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}