{"id":228739,"date":"2026-01-27T12:25:27","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T22:25:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=228739"},"modified":"2026-01-28T11:53:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T21:53:49","slug":"hilo-astronaut-onizuka-science-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/01\/27\/hilo-astronaut-onizuka-science-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Astronaut Ellison Onizuka Science Day reconnects community at UH<\/abbr> Hilo"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Kids
Onizuka\u2019s family honored his legacy of encouraging keiki to follow their dreams.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hundreds of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Island kids and families gathered at the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Hilo<\/a> on January 24, to celebrate the legacy of Kona-born astronaut Ellison Onizuka, who was killed in the Space Shuttle Challenger tragedy 40 years ago.<\/p>\n

\"Kids
The event offered hands-on activities for all ages.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“We\u2019re trying to continue his legacy. He inspired a lot of people, and he wanted to encourage the youngsters to work hard, study hard, and never give up on their dreams,” said Ellison\u2019s younger brother, Claude Onizuka, who worked to bring the event back to Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Island after a five-year hiatus.<\/p>\n

Organized by the Pacific International Space Center for Explorations Systems<\/a> (PISCES<\/abbr>) in partnership with UH<\/abbr> Hilo, the Onizuka Memorial Committee, Canada-France-Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Telescope and the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Science and Technology Museum, the day marked a return for the beloved community tradition, paused since the pandemic.<\/p>\n

The event featured a keynote by NASA<\/abbr> astronaut Donald R. Pettit, whose appearance was funded by American Savings Bank. Pettit, who has spent 590 days in space and is part of the team preparing for the Artemis II<\/abbr> mission, challenged young attendees.<\/p>\n

\"Cultural
Participants took part in workshops and explored exhibits.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“I want them to think, ‘Wow, flying into space, it\u2019s exploration, it\u2019s tough, it\u2019s difficult, but it\u2019s something I want to do!’ and I hope everyone of these students [will] come and arm wrestle me for my job!”<\/p>\n

Approximately 350 attendees participated in hands-on workshops from building volcanoes to learning traditional Polynesian canoe lashing. Interactive exhibits featured liquid nitrogen demos, Maunakea Observatory displays, and a state-qualifying VEX<\/abbr> IQ<\/abbr> Robotics tournament hosted by Wai\u0101kea Intermediate School.<\/p>\n

Ellison Onizuka was the first Asian American and first person of Japanese ancestry to reach space when he completed the Space Shuttle Discovery mission in 1985. He remains the only NASA<\/abbr> astronaut from Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Attendees participated in hands-on workshops from building volcanoes to learning traditional Polynesian canoe lashing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":228738,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[1421,174,14],"class_list":["post-228739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-maunakea-observatories","tag-space","tag-uh-hilo","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t