Ideas For Event Organizers
The basics
As explained on the “How to organize a World Space Week event” pages, really any activity related to space or astronomy in the 4-10 October timeframe will count as a World Space Week event. It can be a small private activity at your local school, a lecture evening at your company, a special exhibition at your science center, museum, church, school or community center, a radio, TV or online event or a large scale public event at a national stadium. As long as it:
- Happens around World Space Week (4-10 October). Please note that longer events are fine too.
- Is related to space, astronomy, sci-fi, rocket science or space-related science or technology
- Is in our database!
Event ideas
If you are still not sure what to do, we are here to help you come up with ideas! Through our global network of donors and partner organizations we have access to a lot of material to help you organize a World Space Week event. Here are some ideas and documents to help you on your way.
Examples of World Space Week events
Please find below a long list of event programs that are great for World Space Week:
Media & Advertising
- Advertising featuring space or World Space Week
- Articles about space or World Space Week in publications
- Social Media posts sharing space facts (Don’t forget to tag #WSW2024)
- Write letters to newspapers about space
Exhibitions & Displays
- Exhibit of space-related art, books or magazines, hardware, maps, moon rocks or meteorites, photographs, stamps, space memorabilia, or student projects
- Festival with space exhibits and activities
- Parade with a space theme
- Outdoor model of solar system
- Planetarium with special shows and special events
- Shopping mall promotions/exhibitions
Educational Activities
- School activities to excite children about STEAM
- Teacher training workshop on space
- Lectures about space
- Farmers learning how to use satellite data
- Libraries feature space books
- Model rocket launch by students and adults
- Youth “space camp”
Community Engagement & Public Involvement
- Conduct a public survey on space issues
- Petition signing to advocate space
- Public meetings to discuss space
- Signing of a World Space Week Proclamation by a government official
- Government leaders speaking about space
- Employees give space talks to community organizations
Special Appearances & Events
- Celebrity, Astronaut, or Cosmonaut appearance
- Sporting event with space celebrities
- Banquet with a space speaker
- Award ceremony for students with the best space projects
- Concert of space-related music
Conferences & Professional Engagement
- Conference on using space for economic development
- Technical conference and/or industrial exposition on space
- Debate or panel discussion about space
- Press conference introducing a space-related product or service
- Internet chats with space experts or students in other countries
Science & Exploration Activities
- Movie marathon with films about space
- Telescope viewing of the stars and planets
- Science fiction festival
Or contact your National Coordinator for even more ideas!
Event Ideas for World Space Week
WSW 2024 theme is “Space & Climate Change”
This World Space Week theme offers numerous opportunities for “Space and Climate Change” inspired events. How about these:
Build your own model space craft
You can now build your own unique combination of satellites, using below free print-it-yourself paper cutout satellite models. Makes for a fun day of real hands-on rocket science and space engineering! So what do all these satellite parts do?
- Build your own spacecraft (NASA)
- Build your own Aeolus (ESA)
- Build your own Satellite (SSTL)
- Build your own Rosetta (ESA – opens as PDF)
- Build the latest ESA scientific satellites (ESA)
Space or Science Fiction Themed Movie Marathon
Watch your favorite movies with your friends and explore the favorites of your friends! Some of the famous titles could be Star Trek, Star Wars, Apollo 13, Armageddon, Space Cowboys, the Astronaut Farmer, Interstellar, Gravity, The Martian, Contact, 2001 A Space Odyssey, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, The Guardians of the Galaxy, … and many more.
Organize a Space or Science Fiction Themed Costume Party
An easy and fun way to get together, exchange views and ideas while proudly showing off your heroes!
Space Scavenger Hunt
Space in Your City Scavenger Hunt or Walking Tour – find the places in your city where space happens (planetarium, observatory, home or residence of famous space person or astronomer, astronomical clock, monuments, etc.)
Meet your friends
A World Space Week meeting could be as simple as finding a bar with an astronaut photo on the wall, the Moon on a mural in your favorite Street Cafe or meet for a picnic or walk under the sky!
Visit your local Science Centre and Space Exhibits
Ask your science center, museum of natural history, aerospace museum or any other technically oriented Centre for Education for a space talk or a guided tour through the space exhibit.
Pub Quiz – WSW style of course
Do you like quizzes and you are a big space fan? Why not organize a WSW themed pub quiz night? Get in touch with your favorite quiz organizers and team up with them to commemorate WSW with a fun, spacey quiz night. You can also organize such an evening with friends at your local school, high-school or university!
A great idea would be to maybe even organize space themed prizes for your event!
Read the classic works of the Space Age
Are you member of a book club? Then reading and discussing for a sci-fi or space themed book, short story or parts of books are a great idea!
You can surely find a book for every taste, by authors such as:
- Arthur C. Clarke
- Isaac Asimov
- Aldeous Huxley
- Ray Bradbury
- Douglas Adams
- Orson Scott Card
- Robert A. Heinlein
- Philip K. Dick
- Larry Niven
- Frank Herbert
- H. G. Wells
and many many more! Here are some lists to get you started:
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/139085843/your-picks-top-100-science-fiction-fantasy-books
http://www.listchallenges.com/npr-top-100-science-fiction-and-fantasy-books
Science – or is it fiction?
Are you passionate about space and you know somebody with a science background? Have a sci-fi to science event by talking about science fiction and how close it is – or not – to becoming science. You could use a movie, book or TV-show as an starting point for a discussion.
Cooking or Baking
If you like good food, friends and space, you could bring all of them together by organising a space themed cook off! This event could be a cooking or baking party making “space” foods. You could make cake pops that look like planets, alien cookies (the ones that don’t turn out!) or experiment with molecular cooking to bring science into your home!
Train like an Astronaut – the other type of sports event
For all of you out there that have not given up the dream yet – get together with friends and do some intensive training for your regular run meet-ups or power walks. Add a few leds to your cap, running shoes or train in your favorite space TV-show t-shirt!
Art Party
Discover how intriguing and motivation space can be by letting your creativity soar! Recreate, or create your own space paintings, spacecrafts or drawings!
Instagram Photo Contest
Take a creative or scientific photo that is space themed and then have a viewing party to see with your family and friends. Create your own hashtag for the contest and motivate your Instagram Followers to join in – this is a great idea to combine with the visits to your local museum or space exhibits, talks and other points mentioned here.
A picture can sometimes tell a thousand stories!
Famous Space Themed Person or Object Talk
Dress up as your favorite famous space themed person or object (ex Sally Ride or Philae) and give a short talk about who you are and your accomplishments
Host a Space Up or a Tweet Up
Spin off events
Spin-offs event. Discuss spin-offs from space to Earth to educate the public about how space does help in everyday life
Geocaching field trips
Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache (container) hidden at that location.
- Guide to Geocaching
- Guide to hosting a geocaching event
- Geocaching information brochure (pdf)
- Geocaching and Education
Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache (container) hidden at that location.
Build your own model spacecraft
Wouldn’t it be great to have your own deep space discovery satellites hanging down the ceiling of your classroom or event venue? You can now build your own unique combination of satellites, using below free print-it-yourself paper cut-out satellite models. Makes for a fun day of real hands-on rocket science and space engineering! So what do all these satellite parts do?
Rocket Clubs
Invite rocket clubs to build and launch their own rockets during World Space Week. Make a contest by getting donors to provide prizes.
Lectures
Invite special guests or subject matter specialists to lecture on topics of interest about space Discoveries, what space does for us in every day life and other topics.
Conferences, Summits and Seminars
Organize a conference, a summit, symposium or seminar during the week of October 4-10. Invite special guests to speak, invite delegates, organize special subject tracks, arrange a venue. A SpaceUP is a great way to bring space fans together.
Space Facility Tours
Any space facility, ground stations, development and industry locations to open the doors to the public.
Educational Events
Open school days to have demonstrations and hands on science experiments for students. Have special guests visit the schools.
Industry Experts
Have industry experts go to schools and speak to students about their work in the space industry with demonstrations, experiments and real world applications of how science and math are necessary.
Astronomy
Arrange a star party. Get some food and drink a telescope on a clear starry night and you are set!
Planetarium
At the local planetariums have a party, lecture or event and ask the management to reduce rates or open up to the public for free that week.
Do you have any questions? Contact us via contact@worldspaceweek.org