Reston’s Interstellar Dreams is launching a center to boost space talent

Starting next month, a local nonprofit wants to launch (pun intended) the space careers of young students.

Interstellar Dreams, a program from the nonprofit Pearl Project Institute for Innovation in STEM Literacy, is planning to open a 40,000-square-foot space center in Reston by 2023. The program wants to create a virtual center with training and simulations for future space workers within the space. While the facility will be open to all, the programming is specifically geared toward girls and women. The site will also feature floor-to-ceiling LED walls that wrap the room, simulating the look of a real-life space center.

Ahead of that full center launch, a smaller prototype center is set to open Sept. 10 at an observatory at George Mason University.

Interstellar Dreams is raising $5 million from both space tech companies and foundations to create the facility. It will feature a mission command, space station and planetary habitat. Once the space is completed, Mission Commanders will lead groups in teachings and space-based problem-solving. Teachers, students Videos on the walls will simulate actual travel through space. Groups of students, teachers and professionals will all be able to visit.

The effort is part of the Pearl Project’s programming, which aims to expand the future space workforce by promoting STEM to young students.

Robin McDougal, Interstellar Dreams’ founder and CEO, told Technical.ly that the project is meant to call back to the thought that if students and young people can dream an interstellar dream, they can solve space problems. She hopes to build a pipeline from middle school to postgraduate school and emerging professionals, through which visitors can start practicing complex problem-solving with the center’s curriculum.

McDougal added that many kids love space from their childhood onward. The problem is that many don’t believe there’s a career in it beyond being an astronaut – a disconnect she hopes to fix.

“What we believe is that the universe and beyond belongs to everyone, and that means artists, writers, storytellers, singers, entertainers, fashion designers, everyone,” McDougal said. “We just need to show you how NASA or SpaceX or any other commercial space organization utilizes the diverse talents out there.”

When visiting, attendees will work on “missions” relevant to today’s commercial space industry, like building satellites, monitoring the Earth’s climate and circling the moon (like the Artemis program). School groups and students can take part in two-hour simulations or participate in a weeklong summer camp in 2023. McDougal also noted that families can visit for an hour-long mission on a weekend outing, while companies can do a mission for a team-building day.

But on the whole, the center is designed to increase potential talent, especially among young women. According to Interstellar Dreams, the commercial space scene is a billion-dollar industry with a need for new talent, which it hopes to provide in the NoVa center. The Reston location will be sustained through donations, sponsorships and memberships.

Another look at the potential space center build. (Courtesy photo)

While NASA is not directly involved in the project, the Interstellar Center was an official launch viewing partner for the planned Aug. 29 launch of lunar ship Artemis I, which has since been rescheduled. The unmanned Artemis launch is intended to be the predecessor for a trip with astronauts to the moon (likely scheduled for 2025), which itself will be a test run for a manned mission to Mars. With the new push toward sending astronauts back to the moon, Interstellar believes there’s even more of a need for new space talent.

“They just don’t know that this is what the new space economy needs,” McDougal said. “So this place is designed to create an ecosystem ready for young people to come and bring their [passion] and still feel like they’re part of the commercial space industry.”