We will soon have a speaker from Apollo 13 coming to speak to our group! Here is the press release:
The Magnolia and Tomball Homeschoolers (MaTH) Robotics Team, in conjunction with The Woodlands Homeschoolers Robotics Team, is proud to host a special presentation by former Apollo 13 Mission Controller Jerry Woodfill.
For 42 years, Woodfill has been employed by NASA in Houston. He holds BAEE and BSEE degrees from Rice University which he attended on a basketball scholarship. At the onset of the lunar landing program, he managed the spacecraft warning systems so that he was monitoring spacecraft Eagle's descent when Neil Armstrong landed on the Moon.
Likewise, on April 13, 1970, Woodfill was monitoring Apollo 13's warning system when the vehicle exploded. His system was the first alert of the life-threatening malfunction depicted in the Tom Hanks-Ron Howard movie Apollo 13. In 2002, Universal Studios designated Woodfill as a spokesman to the national media for the release of Apollo 13 as an IMAX film. For his role in the rescue of Apollo 13, he shared the Presidential Medal of Freedom as a member of the Apollo 13 Mission Operations Team.
Woodfill often shares historic talks concerning the space race and the rescue of Apollo 13 from his perspective as a participant. Especially well received is his recreation of President John Kennedy¹s Rice Stadium Moon Race Speech. Present as a student, Woodfill was inspired to the extent that it led to his employment at the Manned Spacecraft Center in 1965.
Woodfill is the technical manager's representative for NASA JSC's Automation, Robotics, and Simulation Division. He has conducted Space Robotic Educators' Workshops at several colleges, done summer camp robotic demonstrations, and created robotic models and animations for NASA robotic projects.
A $5 cover per family will be taken at the door to defray expenses for equipment and facility use. Mr. Woodfill donates his time and effort on behalf of educational outreach. He will be giving out complimentary CDs, so please RSVP to info@math-robotics.org.
