Between the Artemis II moon mission in April, the recent cosmic light shows from solar and lunar eclipses, and the Perseid meteor shower, excitement for real-life astronomy is soaring among kids.
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All you have to do, really, is look up. Star-driven, Hollywood blockbusters such as Matt Damon’s “The Martian” and Ryan Gosling’s “Project Hail Mary” show how science can be used to attack basic survival problems, while video games and virtual-reality exhibits are bringing young minds inside simulated rocket factories, exploding stars, and the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy known as Sagittarius A-star.
They all spring from the direct observations of telescopes, stretching back to the early 17th-century heyday of Galileo, and into the soon-to-debut, earth-based Vera C. Rubin Observatory and Giant Magellan telescopes.
“Multiple waves of interest seem to be peaking at the same time right now,” said Ka Chun Yu, curator of space science at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. “People like the idea of doing something humans have never done before, or being able to explore somewhere we didn’t know anything about until we sent a robot or humans out there.”
But experts are also concerned that our renewed interest in space may not always be keeping young minds in orbit — especially at a time when the STEM field in the U.S. desperately needs them. Surveys by Yu show that a couple of weeks after a planetarium show such as the Pedro Pascal-narrated “Encounters in the Milky Way,” students’ interest drops solidly back down to Earth.
“If you could keep up that excitement, that means a lot more kids who could potentially become interested in STEM, even if it’s not a space-related industry,” Yu said.
Jobs in science, technology, engineering and math are expected to grow by at least 8% over the next decade, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, or about three times faster than the 2.7% projection for non-STEM occupations. Multi-billion-dollar investments in AI but also green technology are driving needs in those understaffed fields, even as new federal restrictions on immigration have proven a brain-drain for foreign talent in the U.S., the Brookings Institution found.
Colorado’s own aerospace industry has grown by 88% in the past two decades, more than any other emerging industry in the Denver and Boulder metro areas, according to a 2024 report from the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade. That translates to more than 2,000 aerospace businesses employing 55,000-plus employees directly, and another 184,000 indirectly, with leaders such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Northrop Grumman.
“It’s in the air around here,” said Jennifer Hoffman, a University of Denver professor and director of the college’s 132-year-old Chamberlin Observatory. “But even with Colorado’s aerospace industry and connections to space exploration, we need to make sure to do things that make it feel connected and relevant to young people.”
There are proven ways to demystify concepts that underpin space sciences, Hoffman said, without getting lost in physics mazes. Everyone has their own sweet spot between math and mirth, but weird, fun, hands-on programming appeals especially to young minds.
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For some, it’s the congenial public nights at observatories such as Chamberlin, which are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but also free monthly lectures at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, or the new Smithsonian touring exhibit “Starstruck,” which opened Aug. 13 at Denver’s York Street Yards. That one uses real scientific data to re-create distant supernovas in stunning 3D, and depict life-size, state-of-the-art space observatories such as the James Webb Space Telescope, built partly in Colorado.
It meets curious minds where they are, experts said, to encourage further exploration.
“Young kids are not bashful about asking good questions,” said Ron Hranac of the Denver Astronomical Society, a nonprofit that was founded in 1949 as the Denver Telescope Makers Club.
To answer those, Hranac invites astronomers of all ages to his nights at Chamberlin Observatory, where visitors can explore the massive telescope, focus on Jupiter’s equatorial belts with hobbyist-level gear, and hear from diverse experts including Hoffman. The interactivity is key, Hranac said, and made all the easier with app-based digital telescopes, for example, that lower the bar for participation.
“I’ve also done presentations at schools where I give them a tiny fragment of a meteorite they can take home, which always blows them away,” he said.
Denver Film’s 22-year-old Sci-Fi Film Series, in partnership with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, held a reliably sold-out screening of “Project Hail Mary” in July at the museum’s Infinity Theater, where planetary scientist Kimberly Ennico-Smith tested the film’s science “against real facts and theories.”
Parents can learn from these educators, museums and commercial entertainment companies taking advantage of the current crest, experts said, and apply some of those fun-science lessons at home. If we can sustain that momentum until the next big Artemis launch in late 2027, there’s an even brighter future for space sciences and aerospace in general, said Rachel Pearl Herman, chief experience officer at Wings Over the Rockies, the state’s official air and space museum.
“You can come to these public programs, but you can also get involved, volunteer, make friends at these events, and go to camps where you study rocket design,” she said. “It’s about making it fun for kids. They know they’re learning science, but they’re also learning to see themselves in it.”
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