April 12 means one small step for man and one giant party for mankind.
Yuri’s Night: the World Space Party is an international celebration of man’s exploration of the final frontier, and it’s coming to Gainesville this weekend. UF’s Small Satellite Design Club is hosting the free party at 9 p.m. on Saturday at The Midnight downtown.
April 12 commemorates Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first human to enter space in 1961, as well as the 1981 launch of the Columbia, NASA’s first space shuttle. The United Nations’ Space Generation Advisory Council Conference started the tradition in 2001 with 64 events worldwide. This year, Gainesville will join people around the world for the celebration.
Tyler Strickland, external vice president of the Small Satellite Design Club, said the party will be a laid-back social event.
The Midnight will have $2 specials on Blue Moon and the club hired a disc jockey to play space-themed music. It will decorate the scene accordingly.
“We’re usually an engineering-focused club, but we wanted to do something that everyone can appreciate,” the 22-year-old UF aerospace engineering senior said.
Peter Barnes, a UF assistant scientist and professor of astronomy, said while launching research robots and probes to space is more efficient, sending humans into space is an accomplishment for prestige.
“It’s a frontier,” Barnes said. “It’s a cultural thing.”
[A version of this story ran on page 3 on 4/11/2014 under the headline "UF satellite club to host out-of-this world party Saturday"]
