Celebrating Space with Star Wars and Astronauts

If you hadn’t noticed yet, we are pretty big space enthusiasts here at Tech Square ATL (TSQATL) Social Club. From hosting our very own Space Soirée with a panel of expert speakers, to discussing the meaning of space exploration during a Power Meal, to testing our community members with a rocket stomp challenge – we’ve really explored all avenues of this topic. Even the launch of space-related technologies, like Starlink, has been on our radar.

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So, with May the 4th and National Astronaut Day right around the corner, we decided to embrace our nerdy side as we explore space and time and celebrate these back-to-back holidays centered around one of our favorite subjects.

For all the Star Wars fans out there, the beginning of May can be quite an important time. May the 4th is observed by fans as “Star Wars Day” due to the obvious pun on the popular Jedi phrase, “May the Force be with you.” And if that wasn’t enough, May 5 has come to be called “Revenge of the Fifth,” as a day for fans to join the “dark side.” Both these dates were created by fans, but in 2013 The Walt Disney Company and Lucasfilm embraced the “holidays” and now have special events at Walt Disney World and Disneyland parks every year as a celebration. 

Of course, we aren’t here just to talk about Star Wars. May 5 is also known as National Astronaut Day. On May 5, 1961 astronaut Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. became the first American in space aboard the Freedom 7 Space capsule. The brief suborbital flight, which lasted 15 minutes and reached a height of 116 miles into the atmosphere, was a milestone achievement. This trailblazing example of heroic bravery and adventurous spirit is the essence of what National Astronaut Day is all about, with the goal of the holiday to encourage astronauts to share their stories.

DID YOU KNOW?

The famous phrase “May the 4th be with you’ was first used back in 1979 to celebrate when Margaret Thatcher first took office as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Are you a space enthusiast like us? Let us know in the comments below.

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