![Apollo 11 and beyond VR experience with astronaut on the moon](/sites/default/files/styles/card_small/public/2023-07/Apollo%2011%20%26%20Beyond%20Page.jpg.webp?itok=gUPkjo7-)
This week, the Intrepid Museum will host a celebration of space, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), and science fiction at its 7th annual Space & Science Festival from September 20-23. Guests can meet astronauts, explore exhibits by NASA, chat with our expert partners, stargaze on the flight deck, and more during four days of out-of-this-world events at the Museum.
We checked in with our Senior Space Advisor and former NASA astronaut, Mike Massimino, to see what his favorite space movies are and why:
- The Martian (2015) – “This movie has great science demonstrations and shows the real camaraderie between astronauts.”
- The Right Stuff (1983) – “This movie changed my life. I saw this as a senior in college and it rekindled my interest in becoming an astronaut. My favorite line: in response to being asked what “astronaut” means by Gus Grissom (Fred Ward), Gordon Cooper (Dennis Quaid) responds, “star voyager.”
- Star Wars (1977) – “It’s a classic! It was fun for me as a kid and again as a parent with my kids.”
- Apollo 13 (1995) – “This is the most accurate of all the space movies and it shows how the Mission Control Center has your back.”
- Gravity (2013) – “George Clooney makes for a very cool astronaut!”
![mike massimino astronaut](/sites/default/files/styles/card_small/public/2023-07/Michael_Massimino-sapce.png.webp?itok=rc3wHQOt)
![Astronaut Michael J. Massimino, STS-109 mission specialist, peers into Columbia's crew cabin during a brief break in work on the Hubble Space Telescope, latched down just a few feet behind him in Columbia's cargo bay, during his second extravehicular activity of STS109 on March 5, 2002. (NASA)](/sites/default/files/styles/card_small/public/2023-07/Massimino.png.webp?itok=xboVD56T)
![Two children play inside a mock space capsule located in the Museum's Exploreum](/sites/default/files/styles/card_small/public/2023-05/C20A2613.jpg.webp?itok=qRne9Y1n)
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![A man and woman read an exhibit panel on Intrepid's flight deck while their child points at the propeller of an aircraft.](/sites/default/files/styles/card_small/public/2023-05/C20A9282web.jpg.webp?itok=xegVQdKK)
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