U S Space Camp

In this battle of the brains, the sky's no limit. During the next few weeks, kids from five San Fernando Valley elementary schools will compete in a science fair with students from more than a dozen other schools across the city for a chance to win an expense-paid trip to the U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala. Each of the 22 schools that runs city-sponsored LA's BEST after-school enrichment programs will first sponsor its own science fair.

An anonymous buyer purchased Space Camp Florida and the Astronaut Hall of Fame for $100,000 at auction. The transaction was made through SC Realty of Birmingham, Ala. Brenda McMillan, a spokeswoman for the two Titusville attractions, said employees were told there was no possibility the sale could save the facilities in their current form. Sluggish attendance after an economic downturn and last year's terrorist attacks hindered Space Camp's ability to pay its debt, officials said.

Three teachers from the San Fernando and Antelope valleys are among 24 U.S. participants in this week's Space Academy for Educators in Florida. The program, one of several U.S. Space Camp programs for adults, began in 1992. It seeks to empower teachers with the ability to inspire students in math and science and give them classroom materials for developing new space- and science-based educational programs, organizers said.

Here on a school field trip, Grace Wilkowski trooped past cases of memorabilia from the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions, and etched acrylic likenesses of the astronauts who were heroes to a generation of Americans. Space, remarked the Georgia teen, seems so passe. "With the problems we have on Earth, space exploration isn't now our top priority," said the 14-year-old from Savannah who wants to become a physician.

Four minutes, 30 seconds to liftoff. Mission control reports that the shuttle has switched to internal power. I radio confirmation as my eyes wander over the monitors on the flight deck. Outside the forward viewing ports, thin clouds drift through the serene blue of the Florida sky. Perfect launch weather. "Discovery? Repeat: Do you confirm oxygen vents closed? Over." What oxygen vents? Something to do with fuel for the main engine?

It's barely 6 a.m., overcast and chilly. We're too busy scrubbing the large stingray tank to notice. In the last 24 hours, the adults and kids in the group have helped build flamingo rookeries, prepared the manatees' lettuce meal and rescued an injured "whale" (an inflatable one). The bravest among us have taken the rigorous swimming test required for animal-trainer wannabes. It poured during the day, and our jeans got soaked.

Here on a school field trip, Grace Wilkowski trooped past cases of memorabilia from the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions, and etched acrylic likenesses of the astronauts who were heroes to a generation of Americans. Space, remarked the Georgia teen, seems so passe. "With the problems we have on Earth, space exploration isn't now our top priority," said the 14-year-old from Savannah who wants to become a physician.

At T minus 2:00 and holding, the command came from Mission Control: "All positions are 'Go' for launch. Prepare to begin the countdown." Inside a million-dollar space shuttle simulator, computer screens flickered. A little girl in the commander's seat seemed to shrink in the cold glow of her instrument panels. "Roger," she said. The girl and five classmates from Oxnard Street Elementary School in North Hollywood traveled to U.S. Space Camp last month for astronaut training.

At T minus two minutes and holding, the command came from Mission Control. "All positions are 'Go' for launch. Prepare to begin the countdown." Inside a million-dollar space shuttle simulator, computer screens flickered. A little girl in the commander's seat seemed to shrink a little bit more in the cold glow of her instrument panels. "Roger," she said. Six classmates from Oxnard Street Elementary School in North Hollywood traveled to U.S. Space Camp this month for astronaut training.

An anonymous buyer purchased Space Camp Florida and the Astronaut Hall of Fame for $100,000 at auction. The transaction was made through SC Realty of Birmingham, Ala. Brenda McMillan, a spokeswoman for the two Titusville attractions, said employees were told there was no possibility the sale could save the facilities in their current form. Sluggish attendance after an economic downturn and last year's terrorist attacks hindered Space Camp's ability to pay its debt, officials said.

It's barely 6 a.m., overcast and chilly. We're too busy scrubbing the large stingray tank to notice. In the last 24 hours, the adults and kids in the group have helped build flamingo rookeries, prepared the manatees' lettuce meal and rescued an injured "whale" (an inflatable one). The bravest among us have taken the rigorous swimming test required for animal-trainer wannabes. It poured during the day, and our jeans got soaked.

Three teachers from the San Fernando and Antelope valleys are among 24 U.S. participants in this week's Space Academy for Educators in Florida. The program, one of several U.S. Space Camp programs for adults, began in 1992. It seeks to empower teachers with the ability to inspire students in math and science and give them classroom materials for developing new space- and science-based educational programs, organizers said.

In this battle of the brains, the sky's no limit. During the next few weeks, kids from five San Fernando Valley elementary schools will compete in a science fair with students from more than a dozen other schools across the city for a chance to win an expense-paid trip to the U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala. Each of the 22 schools that runs city-sponsored LA's BEST after-school enrichment programs will first sponsor its own science fair.

At T minus 2:00 and holding, the command came from Mission Control: "All positions are 'Go' for launch. Prepare to begin the countdown." Inside a million-dollar space shuttle simulator, computer screens flickered. A little girl in the commander's seat seemed to shrink in the cold glow of her instrument panels. "Roger," she said. The girl and five classmates from Oxnard Street Elementary School in North Hollywood traveled to U.S. Space Camp last month for astronaut training.

At T minus two minutes and holding, the command came from Mission Control. "All positions are 'Go' for launch. Prepare to begin the countdown." Inside a million-dollar space shuttle simulator, computer screens flickered. A little girl in the commander's seat seemed to shrink a little bit more in the cold glow of her instrument panels. "Roger," she said. Six classmates from Oxnard Street Elementary School in North Hollywood traveled to U.S. Space Camp this month for astronaut training.

Space may not be the final frontier for two teen-agers from Maclay Middle School. But space camp is on this summer's travel plans. Eighth-graders Alicia Ramos, 14, and Johnny Madrid, 13, will attend U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., for a week in July. They earned the free trip with essays they wrote last winter in a contest sponsored by the Lockheed Corporate Management Assn. in Calabasas, part of the Lockheed Martin aerospace company, now based in Bethesda, Md.

Space may not be the final frontier for two teen-agers from Maclay Middle School. But space camp is on this summer's travel plans. Eighth-graders Alicia Ramos, 14, and Johnny Madrid, 13, will attend U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., for a week in July. They earned the free trip with essays they wrote last winter in a contest sponsored by the Lockheed Corporate Management Assn. in Calabasas, part of the Lockheed Martin aerospace company, now based in Bethesda, Md.

Infoseek Corp. in Sunnyvale and U.S. Space Camp have invited kids 9 to 13 to offer names for the new international space station. Here are a few of the names submitted in the contest, which runs through Monday. (Kids can still submit names by e-mailing spacecamp.infoseek.com.) NASA promises to consider these names but does not guarantee it will use one. Torpido Peace Maker Spice Girls Anastasia Space Weasel New Hope One Sublime Stella Brotherhood Star Shadow Dudeship Vegas Better Than Mir

Four minutes, 30 seconds to liftoff. Mission control reports that the shuttle has switched to internal power. I radio confirmation as my eyes wander over the monitors on the flight deck. Outside the forward viewing ports, thin clouds drift through the serene blue of the Florida sky. Perfect launch weather. "Discovery? Repeat: Do you confirm oxygen vents closed? Over." What oxygen vents? Something to do with fuel for the main engine?