Space Camp Turkey is located in the Aegean Free Zone, a high-tech industrial park in

Gaziemir Gaziemir is a district of İzmir Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. It is one of the metropolitan districts of Greater İzmir, and is situated to the south of central İzmir ( Konak) on the road into town. İzmir Adnan Menderes Internatio ...

metropolitan district of Izmir,

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, operated by ESBAS the Aegean Free Zone Development and Operating Company. Izmir is a

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

city on the western coast of Turkey with a population of over 4 million people. Space Camp Turkey is one of three space camps in the world, and one of two in Asia. It is affiliated with the United States Space & Rocket Center in

Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in t ...

. Kaya Tuncer, president of ESBAS, established a Space Camp in Turkey after visiting Huntsville with his

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

friend

Ismail Akbay Ishmael ''Ismaḗl''; Classical/Qur'anic Arabic: إِسْمَٰعِيْل; Modern Standard Arabic: إِسْمَاعِيْل ''ʾIsmāʿīl''; la, Ismael was the first son of Abraham, the common patriarch of the Abrahamic religions; and is cons ...

, an Apollo Project Engineer who worked for Dr.

Wernher von Braun Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( , ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German and American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS, as well as the leading figure in the develop ...

. Space Camp Turkey opened on 12 June 2000. American astronaut

Scott Carpenter Malcolm Scott Carpenter (May 1, 1925 – October 10, 2013) was an American naval officer and aviator, test pilot, aeronautical engineer, astronaut, and aquanaut. He was one of the Mercury Seven astronauts selected for NASA's Project Mercury ...

and Ismail Akbay were honored guests at the ceremony. Space Camp Turkey has hosted over 160,000 children and adults from 50 countries and developed space science-related programs that consist of 2-Day Outer Space Adventure during the school year, 5-Day Space Camp and 5-Day Space Camp with Robotics during semester breaks, and 6-Day International Summer Camp with robotic class option.

International credentials

Space Camp Turkey is recognized as a science institution by the Turkish Ministry of Education. It is also licensed with the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, the governing body of the U.S. Space and Rocket Center. Space Camp Turkey is a member of the following school organizations: * Near East South Asia Council of Overseas Schools (NESA) *

Central and Eastern European Schools Association CEESA (Central and Eastern European Schools Association) is an association of international schools in Central and Eastern Europe. The member schools are all sponsored by the United States Department of State, Office of Overseas Schools. Full Mem ...

(CEESA) * European Council of International Schools (ECIS) *

East Asia Regional Council of Overseas Schools The East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS) is an organization of 158 member schools in East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia ...

(EARCOS)

External links

Official Website for Space Camp Turkey ProgramsOfficial Website for Global Friendship Through Space Education Foundation
{{refend İzmir Space organizations

Tourism in Turkey Turkish children Education in Turkey Tourist attractions in İzmir

International credentials

See also

External links