Spring 2016 Newsletter
Letter from the President
In This Issue
Happy winter to all of you, our valued members. I hope your holidays were wonderful and your 2016 is off to a great start.
Collections: Seeking Interns. . . . . 2
I thank you, on behalf of the Air Zoo’s Board, staff, and volunteers, for being the foundation of a remarkable 2015 at the Air Zoo. Our overall participation continues to rise to the highest altitudes as we served over 142,000 people with the Air Zoo educational and exhibit experiences. From Black Wings to Da Vinci to Guadalcanal to Jack Sims to the Ford Aircraft Carrier, we strive to provide new exhibit experiences that our community can enjoy for a limited time or for many years to come. Our education programs also continue to grow in both numbers and students. Field trips, summer camps, and overnights have been more popular than ever, and it fuels our desire to do even more.
Education: Gummy Bears Exp. . . 3
But “more” cannot be the goal without focusing on “better”. Each day we ask ourselves how we can provide increased educational and inspirational value to our guests on the Air Zoo exhibit floor; our participants of all ages in our educational programs; and everyone in our community who hears or sees the Air Zoo name. We’ve been hearing many positive comments from teachers, parents, students, foundations, donors, and corporations regarding an increased impact and value we bring to our experiences. We also realize that, with input from individuals like you, we can and will get even “better”.
Collections: Meet Intern Patrick. . 2 Collections: New Exhibit Debut. . 2 Education: Science Update. . . . . 3 Education: This Month In History.3 Education: Spring Break Camps.4 Advancement: SIHOF 2016. . . . 5 Advancement: Open Cockpits. . 5
To that end we are going to work hard this year to get input from you on the Air Zoo experience. We are developing tools and techniques to ask you what you love about every facet of the Air Zoo experience; what areas we can do better; and what other ideas and directions you might have for us to consider in the future. As the Air Zoo moves forward with our Strategic Plan, we want to give you the opportunity, through your input, to help us shape the future of the Air Zoo. We hope you will take off into 2016 with us.
Ad Astra!
Advancement: Heroes on Deck. . 6 Advancement: Intrepid Group. . . 6 Advancement: Member Promo. . 6 East Campus: WMFA Visit. . . . . . 7 East Campus: True Dreams. . . . . . 7 Fly Buy Store: New Items!. . . . . . 8
Contact Air Zoo 6151 Portage Road Portage, MI 49002 269.382.6555 866.524.7966 (toll free)
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Membership. . . . . . . . . 350.2815 Monetary Donations . . 350.2812 Fly Buy Museum Store. . 350.2828
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Hours of Operation: Mon - Sat: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sun: Noon to 5 p.m. Online: For more information or to shop online visit www.airzoo.org. www.facebook.com/AirZoo
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Collections Department: Summer Collections Internships Available Christy Kincaid
Collections Registrar Do you know anyone who is looking for a history internship? The Air Zoo is looking for college students with a passion for history to experience the exciting work of the Collections Department! Three different internships are available: Archive, Curatorial, and Digital Assets. If you have any questions about these opportunities please inquire to ckincaid@AirZoo.org. Internships tend to fill up fast, so please make sure to submit your resume to the Air Zoo’s Volunteer Coordinator Tamra Stafford at Volunteer@AirZoo.org by March 1st!
Meet our New Collections Intern Laurie Burkhardt
Collections Manager Patrick Hargis is currently pursuing a Masters of Arts in Public History at Western Michigan University and a Masters of Science in User Experience Design at Kent State University. He graduated with his BA in Public History from WMU. His interests are in military history and the history of science and technology, focusing on the impact history can have on the people in a civilization. On a timeline, his main emphasis is from 1900 to 1950, but he is also very knowledgeable in the time period of 1870 to present day. Patrick was a United States Marine from 2008 to 2012, where he served in the infantry. He was deployed three times, one of which was a combat deployment to Afghanistan in the Musa Q’ala/ Zamindawar region. Patrick will complete 120 hours for his internship credit at WMU. He will be here until May as the Collection Department’s Curatorial Intern. His project is to organize, research and catalog our space collection that was brought to us from the Jackson Space Science Center. If you see him around, give him a warm Air Zoo welcome.
New Exhibit Debut Laurie Burkhardt
Collections Manager The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum’s “Taking the Seas: Rise of the American Aircraft Carrier” has made its debut on December 18, 2015 on the Air Zoo’s Main Campus Exhibit Floor! Come see the history of aircraft carriers from WWI to the celebratory christening of the USS Gerald R. Ford, named after Michigan’s own President. The exhibit includes a large-scale model of the USS Ford, rare artifacts, and documents encompassing the carrier’s commissioning. Come see it while you can! “Taking the Seas” is scheduled to leave in the late spring of 2016.
Education Department: Edge-ucation Experiment: SCIENCE UPDATE Incredible Growing Gummy Bears Capturing the Wonders of Hummingbird Flight 1. Measure and weigh gummy bears before starting. Use a data table to record your changes. 2. Fill 3 glasses with water. 3. Leave one glass alone. Add about a tablespoon of salt to the second glass. Add a tablespoon of sugar to the third. 4. Add a few gummy bears to each glass. 5. Wait about 12 hours. Measure and weigh the bears. 6. Check back after 24 hours. Measure and weigh the bears. Most sugary candies dissolve when added to water. Try placing other types of candies in glasses of water and compare your results. Gelatin – one of the main ingredients in gummy bears – is the key. When gummy bears are made, gelatin and water are heated, just like making Jell-O. As the mixture cools, the water is drawn out of the bears and they harden to a chewy little bear. Gelatin is a long chain-like molecule that twists and forms a solid form. As the water is removed in the cooling process, the gelatin solidifies. When the gummy bears are added to water, the water molecules will move into the bear by means of osmosis. Osmosis is the movement of solvent molecules (water) through a partially permeable membrane into an area of higher solute (gummy bear/ gelatin) to equalize the solute concentration on both sides. So what does that mean? There is less water and more gelatin inside the gummy bear. There is more water outside the gummy bear. The water doesn’t want to be crowded, so some of the water molecules will move inside the gummy bear where there are fewer water molecules and a lot of gelatin molecules. The gummy bears started out with a lot of water but when they cooled and hardened, most of the water was removed. What happens when you add salt to the water? The salt particles are much smaller than the gelatin molecules in the water. The water will leave the gummy bear and move to where there are more salt molecules. The gummy bear won’t shrink, so it looks like it stays the same size. Test this yourself – what happened to the gummy bears when you used sugar? Will you get different results by using a different solvent instead of water? What about soda? Safety note – do not eat the gummy bears after they have sat in the water. When you touch them with your fingers and drop them in the water, something else is added to the water and begins to grow – bacteria. http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/lab/experiments/candy-chemistry-experiments/
Science News - Vol. 189, No. 2, January 23, 2016, p. 32
by Andrew Grant Hummingbirds are extreme athletes, deftly hovering and darting between flowers. Now a combination of high-speed filming and computer simulations reveals how the birds’ wings manipulate the surrounding air to aid in flight. The images seen here come from a video of simulated flight that won an American Physical Society Gallery of Fluid Motion award in November. Above, small pockets of air swirl in tornado-like vortices as a hummingbird turns to its right. Researchers have known that the bird’s wings induce lift by generating what are called leading-edge vortices (represented as thick blue layers around the wing edges). But the air movement is even more complex, the simulations reveal. The sequence of images below, which display only the largest vortices, shows how a bird in flight spawns an array of helpful swirls near different parts of the wings. Blue pockets of air are circulating in the opposite direction of red pockets.
These depictions of hummingbird flight incorporate data from the lab of University of Montana biologist Bret Tobalske, who films the birds with cameras shooting at 1,000 frames per second. The simulations help Tobalske dissect how the birds use leading-edge vortices in flight, a tactic that has also been mastered by insects and the seed capsules of trees. This Month in History
February 20, 1962 - John Glenn launched into orbit Astronaut John Glenn became the first American launched into orbit. Traveling aboard the “Friendship 7” spacecraft, Glenn reached an altitude of 162 miles (260 kilometers) and completed three orbits in a flight lasting just under five hours. Glenn was the third American in space, preceded by Alan Shepard and Virgil “Gus” Grissom who had each completed short sub-orbital flights. All of them had been preceded by Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who was the first human in space. Gagarin completed one orbit on April 12, 1961 - a feat that intensified the already ongoing Space Race between the Russians and Americans. Glenn’s successful flight showed the Americans had caught up and was followed in September 1962 by President John F. Kennedy’s open call to land an American on the moon before the decade’s end.
Education Department: Spring Break Camps
Spring Break Camps Spring Break +1 Camps (PreK - K) Kids, bring your adult +1 with you to camp and have twice the fun! These camps are for preschool to kindergarten aged children to attend with an adult chaperone. $25/child (one adult per child gets a free copilot wristband); 9 am – 12 pm; Limit 13 pairs
April 5 - Fantastic Flying
Discover how people learned to fly by studying birds and experimenting with kites, gliders, and planes. Learn about basic aircraft construction while making your own take-home flying machines in this program full of highflying fun. AZ_FA
April 6 - Ocean Explorers
Dive into the “ocean” using realistic puppets, ocean-themed music, and dramatic play to experience the diversity of animal species below the waves. Fish, sharks, sea turtles, dolphins, rays, and more will come to life in this wildocean environment. AZ_OC
April 7 - Astronauts in Training
Astronauts are living in space! Join us to learn more about the special tools, astronaut suits, and equipment used aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Young explorers will design their own space suits to take home. AZ_AI
Spring Break Day Camps (K - 2nd and 3rd - 5th) Choose from a variety of science-based, day-camp programs that engage and inspire children to learn about the exciting world of science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM). Utilizing fun, exciting, and highly interactive programming, the Air Zoo guides young minds through creative and inquiry-based experiences that instill a life-long passion for learning. $50/child; 9 am – 4 pm; K – 2nd grade, Limit 25 & 3rd – 5th grade, Limit 25 After 4 pm, adults can purchase a wrist band for half-price to take their children on the rides. After-care is available from 4 pm – 5 pm for an additional $10.
April 5 - Rockets and Roller Coasters
Fly up, zoom down, and spin all around in a day full of wild science fun. Discover that “what goes up must come down” when you test the art of aerodynamics and the science of speed. K - 2nd Grade: AZ_R1 3rd - 5th Grade: AZ_R2
April 6 - Rescue 911
Oh no! Your friend has fallen out of your tree fort – what should you do? Okay, so it didn’t really happen, but you will have fun learning how to handle a variety of emergency situations. Practice responding to emergencies just like real paramedics. K - 2nd Grade: AZ_91 3rd - 5th Grade: AZ_92
April 7 - Candy Chemistry
What makes Pop Rocks “pop” and sodas “fizz”? Experiment with floating chocolate bars, growing gummy bears, and exploding soda geysers in this sweet camp full of delicious fun. K - 2nd Grade: AZ_C1 3rd - 5th Grade: AZ_C2
For registration and more info: Events@AirZoo.org (269)350-2848
Advancement Department: SAVE THE DATE: 2016 Science Innovation Hall of Fame Awards Maria Suszynski
Director of Advancement Join us on Saturday, May 21st for the third annual Science Innovation Hall of Fame Awards Gala & Dinner presented by Western Michigan University. Join in as the Air Zoo inducts leaders who have impacted the aerospace industry into the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame and recognizes the high school students, K-12 educators, and individuals who have supported, innovated, and excelled within the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM) education. This highly entertaining and inspiring gala celebration is one fun event you won’t want to miss. Be sure to reserve your place among our community friends and leaders, government representatives, corporate partners, and long-time supporters as we toast the accomplishments of SW Michigan’s finest innovators. Tickets go on sale April 1st with a new Early-bird ticket price of $75 ($65 for Air Zoo Members). Do you know an innovative student or educator worthy of recognition? Nominate someone today! Applications are now being accepted for the Student Excellence Award & Educator Excellence Award. The deadline for submissions is April 1, 2016. See some of our past awardees and inductees HERE. The Air Zoo is making a greater impact on Southwest Michigan students and STEAM Education than ever before, and we have our community to thank for it! Plan on lending your enthusiastic support of the Science Innovation Hall of Fame Awards by attending our community celebration of education and inspiration.
Open Cockpit Weekends Join us in February for our Open Cockpit Weekends. You won’t want to miss the opportunity to climb inside some of the Air Zoo’s actual aircraft. Different aircraft are featured each weekend in which you can enjoy “taking the controls”. Main Campus hours are Friday and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. and East Campus 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sunday hours for both buildings are 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5 - Sunday, Feb. 7: Mallard at Main Campus and F-86 at East Campus Friday, Feb. 12 - Sunday, Feb. 14: Wildcat at Main Campus and F-86 at East Campus Friday, Feb. 19 - Sunday, Feb. 21: Stearman at Main Campus and F-86 at East Campus Friday, Feb. 26 - Sunday, Feb. 28: P-47 at Main Campus and F-86 at East Campus
Advancement Department:
Free Film Screening: Heroes on Deck
K College Alumnus and film director John Davies returns to Kalamazoo to present his latest documentary, Heroes on Deck. This one-hour film tells the extraordinary story of U.S. Naval aviators training to fight in the Pacific during WWII by learning to land on and take off from makeshift aircraft carriers just off the Chicago shoreline in Lake Michigan. As a result of many crashes and some fatal accidents during these exercises, perhaps the largest collection of WWII aircraft in the United States sits on the bottom of Lake Michigan today. Some of those planes were raised from the lake and are featured in this made-for-PublicTelevision film, including the FM-2 Wildcat currently under restoration at the Air Zoo. Heroes on Deck is showing one night only - Tuesday, February 16, 2016 in the Dalton Theatre at the K College Light Fine Art Center - and begins at 7:00 PM. The event is free to attend and includes a Director’s Talk-Back and Reception following the screening.
Attend the World Premiere of the newest film from award-winning director and Kalamazoo College Alum John Davies! Heroes on Deck features footage shot at the Air Zoo, and explores the amazing role Lake Michigan played in training aircraft carrier pilots during World War II. This event is FREE to the general public! What: World Premiere of Heroes on Deck When: February 16th, 7:00 pm Where: Dalton Theater 1140 Academy St, Kalamzoo, MI 49006 (Light Fine Arts Bldg., Kalamazoo College Campus)
Sponsor Highlight: Intrepid Professional Group On December 11, 2015, The Air Zoo opened their newest exhibit, Jack A. Sims: Hometown Hero, with a celebratory reception, generously sponsored by Intrepid Professional Group. The event included a Proclamation, written in honor of Jack Sims and presented by City of Kalamazoo Mayor Bobby Hopewell, and the gifting of the Congressional Gold Medal, presented to the Doolittle Raiders and gifted to the Air Zoo by the Sims Family. Intrepid is a professional Michigan based property management company that specializes in Residential and Commercial properties. With over 75 years of combined experience, they provide top quality professional support and service to a wide range of Real Estate owners and investors in an effort to help and develop communities in their portfolio as desired places to live and work. Intrepid inspires innovation, culture, and leadership within their team of professionals while engaging each relationship with a quality of care and compassion that translates into accountable results for client partners and quality living for individual tenants, which together, advance community. With the support of Intrepid Professional Group, the Air Zoo honors and pays tribute to one of Kalamazoo’s own. Be sure to visit the Jack A. Sims exhibit in the Main Exhibit Hall.
Winter Membership Promotion This winter, the Air Zoo is running an exciting promotion never offered before. Purchase new or renew your existing membership during the month of February and we will add three complimentary months to your membership. You’ll be able to enjoy 15 months of Member benefits for the price of only 12! This offer isn’t only available to new members, it’s available to current members as well. No matter when your membership expires, we’ll give you 15 months of membership for the price of only 12! This extension will allow you 3 free additional months of Air Zoo benefits like access to ASTC Passport program benefits (family and grandparent members only), discounts on camps and birthday parties, discounts in the FlyBuy Museum Store, and free admission access during the month of May to the Kalamazoo Nature Center, Binder Park Zoo, The Gilmore Car Museum, and the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts! Don’t pass up the opportunity to get the MOST value for your membership - this promotion may never be seen again. (Offer expires February 29th.)
EAST CAMPUS: Preservation Report CAN WE USE AN EXTRA 200 AIRCRAFT RESTORATION TECHNICIANS? YOU BETCHA! Submitted by: Greg Ward, Senior Conservator By providing rich hands-on experiences for young people, Air Zoo team leaders plant seeds toward promoting a promising future for STEAM-based careers everywhere! In March, Ginger DeVillers, Managing Director of West Michigan Flight Academy, and past winner of the Air Zoo’s Educator Excellence Award, will be accompanying 200+ students on a unique field trip experience to the Air Zoo. Not only will their group enjoy a variety of well organized educational programs, but each person will have an opportunity to help restore the U.S. Navy’s FM-2 Wildcat. This aircraft is the latest in a series of Lake Michigan recovered aircraft, brought out of the water on December 7, 2012 from a depth of 200’. With parental approval, WMFA students who help work on the Wildcat shall have their individual names added to the master list, which will eventually be engraved on a plaque that will remain on permanent display with the aircraft.
In Spring of 2015, Virginia (Ginger) DeVillers became a recipient of the prestigious Educator Excellence award at the Air Zoo Science Innovation Hall of Fame Awards Gala.
ABOUT WEST MICHIGAN FLIGHT ACADEMY – Their motto: “Transforming Young Lives Through Flight”. The primary purpose at West Michigan Flight Academy (WMFA) is to give economically disadvantaged urban and rural youth the opportunity to pursue a highly advanced technical career related to Aviation and the Aerospace Industries. WMFA creates experiences for students that build character and develop skills in communication, social, technical, professional discipline and accountability.
Working with dedicated professionals and educators, students prepare for their futures by participating in activities that stress the application of aviation and space. Students are encouraged to take the steps necessary to finish high school and pursue an advanced technical career related to the Aerospace industry. WMFA is a launching point for: Airline Pilots Corporate Pilots Air Traffic Controllers Aeronautical Engineers Aviation Safety Inspectors Electronics Technicians Airport Administrators Computer Specialists Meteorologist Maintenance Technicians CHILDHOOD DREAMS, INSPIRING TODAY’S YOUNG PEOPLE TO BECOME TOMORROW’S MUSEUM LEADERS Submitted by: Greg Ward, Senior Conservator After graduating While providing restoration center tours, our younger museum guests from Pittsburgh sometimes ask, “How did you get such a dream job, working on beautiful Institute of museum aircraft?” Well, whenever that question pops up, I always take Aeronautics, I earned an A&P License that as my cue to share a story and moved to entitled, “Childhood Dreams”. Kalamazoo. Director You see, as a young boy, the of Restoration & Maintenance Curtiss P-40 Warhawk was Richard Schaus one of my favorite WWII and I maintained over a dozen of vintage airplanes. I built several the Air Zoo’s flying versions of the P-40, all the while aircraft, one being fantasizing about the full-scale Sue Parish’s Curtiss P-40N. Dreams machine while flying them. Little 13 years old and addicted to building/ flying gasreally do come true! powered model airplanes. Kneeling in the grass, could I have known, back in that and getting ready to start the engine, the Curtiss P-40 would bark to life! My dream would come true summer of 1973, a mere 15 years later I would earn the privilege of becoming a full-time licensed A&P Mechanic, on FULL SCALE aircraft! 15 years later when joining the Air Zoo team!
CONSULT THE CONSERVATOR – Technical questions? Please feel free to email Greg Ward, Senior Conservator of Aircraft & Space Artifacts - gward@airzoo.org
Fly Buy Store:
New Items!
Thames & Kosmos was founded in 2001 by a science museum director and her son, who saw the great need and demand for better science education materials — resources for parents and their children that are more engaging, more effective, more relevant, and more fun.
Coming Soon!
Coming soon! A perfect diecast replica of the Air Zoo’s iconic Pink P-40 Warhawk. These Daron Postage Stamp Collection models are sure to go fast! Please contact the Fly Buy Museum Store if you would like to be added to the call list for their arrival at (269)350-2828.