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Goddard Events & Programs

A young girl with a long blond ponytail and black T-shirt faces away from the camera, watching a small model rocket lift off from its launch pad. The rocket is behind yellow caution tape, and a thin stream of white smoke billows out from its end into a small white cloud underneath as it shoots diagonally up toward the upper right corner of the image. The grass between the child and the rocket is green, and the background is dense, dark green trees.

Upcoming Special Events:

Save the Date card for International Observe the Moon Night, Sept. 14, 2024.
Save the date! International Observe the Moon Night is September 14, 2024!

International Observe the Moon Night is an annual world-wide public engagement program that encourages observation, appreciation, and understanding of our Moon and its connection to NASA planetary science and exploration. Celebrate lunar science and exploration, take part in celestial observations, and honor cultural and personal connections to the Moon at NASA Goddard’s International Observe the Moon Night event.

Saturday, September 14

6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. ET

Join us for interactive hands-on activities, 10′ x 10′ Moon selfie station, a photo booth, presentations, lunar and astronomical observing with telescopes and more! This free event is open to the public and will occur rain or shine.

Recurring Events:

Mission: Experiment

Third Saturday of the Month, 1 – 3 p.m.

The program formally known as “Sunday Experiment” is moving to Saturdays! Introducing Mission: Experiment! This program will be very similar to the previous Sunday Experiment program: a free program offered on the third Saturday of the month, with activities best suited for children ages 5 to 10, and registration is not required. Each month will focus on a different mission or Goddard relevant topic.

This program runs Sept – May and does not occur during the summer months of June, July, and August.

September 21 – ICESat-2

The Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2, or ICESat-2, measures the height of a changing Earth, one laser pulse at a time, 10,000 laser pulses a second. Come and learn more about this amazing mission on Sept. 21 at the Goddard Visitor Center. More details and information on the activities included that day will be posted soon!

An airplane view of sea ice in mottled white and blue with cracks.
The thickness of melting Arctic sea ice, seen here north of Greenland on July 11, 2022, is tricky to measure from space, but a NASA campaign is designed to improve height measurements from the ICESat-2 satellite. (Credit: NASA/Kate Ramsayer)

Grow With Goddard

Third Thursday of the Month, 9 – 10 a.m.

Grow with Goddard! Join us for activities and demonstrations for ages 3-5 here at our visitor center during a special morning hour before we open to the public. Please see the list of dates and topics below. Registration is required for each child participant. Parents and guardians do not need to register, but at least one parent or guardian must be on-site for the program.

Registration is required for this event: NASA Goddard Visitor Center | Eventbrite

  • September 19 – Rockets
  • October 17 – The Ground at our Feet! Earth Science Week
  • November 21 – ABC’s of Space!
  • December 19 – I’m a Scientist!
A young child interacts with a sunspot exhibit.
A young guest interacts with the Visitor Center’s Heliophysics exhibit.

Space for Me

Saturday October 26, 10:30 – 11:30 a.m.

Explore the Goddard Visitor Center during a sensory-friendly hour before we open for the day. Sounds and lighting in our exhibit spaces will be limited during this time. We will also have touch items for visitors to experience. Registration is required for this free program and information can be found on our Eventbrite site here.

A young girl with a long blond ponytail and black T-shirt faces away from the camera, watching a small model rocket lift off from its launch pad. The rocket is behind yellow caution tape, and a thin stream of white smoke billows out from its end into a small white cloud underneath as it shoots diagonally up toward the upper right corner of the image. The grass between the child and the rocket is green, and the background is dense, dark green trees.
A girl watches a model rocket take off from the Goddard Visitor Center on July 14, 2013.
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Talya Lerner

Model Rocket Launches

First Sunday of each month at 1 p.m.

(some holidays excluded; weather, security conditions permitting; call ahead to confirm: 301-286-8981)

Like to build model rockets, but don’t have a launch pad? Now you do! Anyone can bring a model to fly at the Goddard Visitor Center rocket launches; there are no costs or fees to participate. Rockets, motors and supplies are available for purchase at the nearby Goddard Gift Shop (and many hobby shops or toy stores) and you can even get rocket construction and launch tips from our on-site experts on launch day!

Don’t want to launch your own rocket? That’s fine, too — come out to watch, and cheer on our rocketeers!

Model rocket launches are held at the Goddard Visitor Center the first Sunday of the month (some holidays excluded, and weather and security conditions permitting). Launches start at 1 p.m. and are brought to you by the NARHAMS Model Rocket club (http://www.narhams.org/). These launches have been part of Visitor Center programs since 1976.

Visitors bring and prepare their own models; a group safety briefing is given at 1 p.m., and models are given a preflight safety assessment. We allow single-engine models that must not exceed C-class models. 1/2A or A models work best for our field. We do not permit models whose altitude may exceed 2,000 feet, nor do we normally allow glider models.

Weather decisions will be made the day of the launch — to check the status of a launch, please contact the Visitor Center front desk at 301-286-8981.

Sunday Experiment

You can also check out the past virtual Sunday Experiment series here.

Other Goddard Events and Programs

Please note: The events and activities listed below are not affiliated with Goddard’s Visitor Center. The Visitor Center is listing them here as a courtesy. For more information, please contact the respective sponsoring organizations.

Visit the following websites for information on seminars and colloquia at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

Keep Exploring

Discover More Topics From NASA

About Goddard

NASA Goddard – Frequently Asked Questions

Goddard Media Resources and Guidelines

Goddard Center Leadership

Image showing the path light will travel through Roman's mirrors
An optical technician lays on a diving board suspended between NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s primary and secondary mirrors. The photo is a projected reflection through the telescope’s optical path. The technician shines a beam of light through the optical system toward the future location of the Wide Field Instrument, showing how light from cosmic sources will travel through the telescope once the mission launches.
Image showing the path light will travel through Roman's mirrors
An optical technician lays on a diving board suspended between NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s primary and secondary mirrors. The photo is a projected reflection through the telescope’s optical path. The technician shines a beam of light through the optical system toward the future location of the Wide Field Instrument, showing how light from cosmic sources will travel through the telescope once the mission launches.
Image showing the path light will travel through Roman's mirrors
An optical technician lays on a diving board suspended between NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s primary and secondary mirrors. The photo is a projected reflection through the telescope’s optical path. The technician shines a beam of light through the optical system toward the future location of the Wide Field Instrument, showing how light from cosmic sources will travel through the telescope once the mission launches.