June 30, 2003 Children From California To Berlin Honor Shuttle Columbia Astronauts With Oklahoma's Global Space League And Omniplex FREDERICK and OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA. - Students around the world have been working to honor history’s heroes by making paper airplanes decorated to express why they want to become scientific explorers and shipping them to Global Space League's headquarters in Frederick, Okla. Each plane honors the memory of the scientist-explorers onboard the last flight of the Shuttle Columbia. On July 4, select planes will be placed in one of two balloon-carried vehicles, each of which will be released near Lake Frederick to rise up approximately 100,000 feet into the atmosphere. At this altitude, the planes will be at the edge of outer space, where the sky is dark and the earth visibly curves away. From there, the paper airplanes will be released and are expected to travel many miles before finally returning to earth to be found. Each plane will have a registration sticker on it that will instruct the finder to register it at www.okspaceplanes.com. On the site, makers of planes and the general public alike will be able to track where and when the planes are found. If you live in Oklahoma and have missed out, do not despair. Kirkpatrick Science and Air Space Museum at Omniplex in Oklahoma City will have an event on July 3 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at which time a number of kids will still be able to make planes for the event. The craft that will carry the airplanes into the stratosphere, made by Frederick-based HighShips, will be on display and inflated with helium, and museum-goers will be able to suggest and vote on a name for the craft. Speakers from Global Space League and other organizations will be on hand to give talks throughout the day, and budding engineers will be able to test their creations in a small wind tunnel. Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry has formally proclaimed July 4 Scientific Explorers Day in the state of Oklahoma to acknowledge these activities. The proclamation will be displayed at Omniplex. This is the first truly global event Global Space League has arranged. Executive Director Joan Horvath said, "SpaceBenefit, Berlin, Germany (www.spacebenefit.org) has a booth to make planes at a street fair in Berlin that takes place every year. This festival takes place on a historic bridge, the Oberbaumbrücke, over the River Spree -- that connects what used to be East and West Berlin. The symbolism of the fair is global unity, making our activities a wonderful fit. We're excited they will be coming up with a name for one of the HighShips vehicles, and we are looking forward to their student planes arriving in the Unites States for flight on the fourth along with planes from several states including California and, of course, Oklahoma." The public is welcome to watch the launch of the planes on July 4, which will take place in two sets, currently planned for 1 p.m and 2 p.m. liftoffs. The activity is subject to delay or cancellation due to regulatory or weather issues. Check www.globalspaceleague.org for late-breaking changes. The site at Lake Frederick will have activities for all ages all day in addition to the launches, concluding with a fireworks show after dark. From Oklahoma City, Lake Frederick can be reached by taking I-40 West to Highway 183 to the town of Manitou (north of Frederick) and then taking Baseline Road approximately five miles east. The lake site has an entry charge of $3/person or $10/vehicle on the 4th; for more information call the Frederick Chamber at 580-335-2126. Other sponsoring and partnering organizations include the City of Frederick and the Frederick Chamber of Commerce; HighShips; Sam's Club of Lawton; Pioneer Internet (www.pldi.net); Community Action Development Corporation of Frederick; the Oklahoma Space Industry Development Authority; Digital Radiance, Inc (www.digitalradiance.com); Takeoff Technologies, LLC (www.takeofftech.com) Santa Clara University Robotics Systems Lab (rsl.engr.scu.edu); and Great Plains Technology Center (www.gptc.org). About Global Space League: Global Space League, Inc., 105 South Main Street, Frederick, OK 73542, is an organization that works with real scientists and explorers worldwide to arrange for students to send along experiments as part of expeditions. We are planning events to take student experiments to the bottom of the sea, up in the air, and many other places! For information on how your school can subscribe to Global Space League so your students can participate in future events, or for information about sponsoring our events, see www.globalspaceleague.org or call 580-335-2126. About Omniplex: Kirkpatrick Science and Air Space Museum at Omniplex in Oklahoma City, Okla. is a non-profit organization dedicated to informal science education. Omniplex features over 350 hands-on exhibits, live demonstrations, botanical gardens and greenhouse, art and cultural galleries, aviation and space artifacts and memorabilia, a state-of-the-art planetarium, and Oklahoma's only dome-shaped, giant-screen theater. For more information on educational programs and activities, please call 1.800.532.7652 or log on to www.omniplex.org. ### Contacts: Joan Horvath, Executive Director. Global Space League, Inc. 105 South Main St., Frederick OK 73542 Voice 580-335-2126 Cell 626-695-2951 - E-mail joan@takeofftech.com Beth Bussey, Omniplex Education Director 2100 NE 52nd St.; OKC, OK 73111 Phone: (405) 602-3682 E-mail: bbussey@omniplex.org