On January 20, 2025, at 6:00 PM, a special roundtable discussion will take place as part of the Károli Open Talks Program. This unique event, held in English, will feature two distinguished guests: Eryn Andrews, an experienced NASA engineer, and Jim Christensen, a renowned space education specialist. The discussion will focus on current issues in space exploration, space technology, and space-related education, offering attendees an exclusive opportunity to gain insight into the latest advancements in the space industry and their educational applications.
The roundtable discussion will be moderated by Prof. Dr. Róbert Szuchy, Vice-Rector for Education at Károli Gáspár University.
Special Guests:
Eryn Andrews
Eryn Andrews is a NASA engineer with more than 15 years of experience in various fields of the space industry. Throughout her career, she has worked on the design and operation of space station systems, as well as the training of astronaut crews and onboard engineers. She also has significant expertise in mission control and space logistics. Her key areas of specialization include the design and development of spacewalks and spacesuits, with a strong focus on engineering solutions that take human factors into account.
Jim Christensen
Jim Christensen is the retired Director of Innovation at the Aldrin Family Foundation and formerly served as the Director of Education at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, where he led the development of the Astronaut Training Experience and Mars Base 1 programs. Before that, he worked at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston as part of the “Teaching from Space” program, where he coordinated the first educational opportunity involving spaceflight—a videoconference between the crew of the International Space Station and school classrooms. Jim also supported students and teachers in designing and executing experiments that flew under microgravity conditions aboard the NASA Reduced Gravity Aircraft, the Atlantis Space Shuttle, the International Space Station, and the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
Prior to his work at NASA, Jim taught high school for 18 years and was awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching in 1995. He developed the Mars Base Project and AstroVIP programs, which connected students and experts via videoconference to discuss spaceflight and Mars exploration.
Participation:
The event is free of charge, but registration is required. Registered participants will also have the option to join the event online.
Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to learn from leading experts about the latest trends in space exploration and the educational use of space technologies!
Date: January 20, 2025
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Károli Gáspár University, Károlyi Csekonics Palace1088 Budapest, Múzeum street 17.
Language: English
Participation: Free (Registration required)
