Southeastern Pennsylvania’s rich contributions to early U.S. manned spaceflight will be celebrated this month with a special event.  

On Saturday, July 20, from 1 PM to 5 PM at The Fuge in Warminster, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Cold War Historical Society will host “The Space Race in Southeastern Pennsylvania.”  

The Fuge, now an events center, houses the world’s most powerful human centrifuge, known as the “Johnsville Centrifuge.”  

Built by the U.S. Navy, this facility was essential for training military and astronaut personnel as well as serving as an important research facility for understanding the mysterious acceleration or “G” forces encountered by pilots and astronauts during flight. 

Between the late 1950s and mid-1960s, NASA used the centrifuge for G-force training, preparing astronauts for missions under Project Mercury, Project Gemini, and Project Apollo. The Apollo 11 crew—Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins—underwent critical training here before their historic 1969 moon landing. 

The event coincides with two significant anniversaries: the 65th anniversary of Project Mercury astronauts commencing centrifuge training on the Johnsville Centrifuge, and the 55th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing. Project Mercury, the first U.S. manned spaceflight program, trained seven astronauts on the centrifuge: Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom, Scott Carpenter, John Glenn, Wally Schirra, Deke Slayton, and Gordon Cooper. 

The program kicks off with an open house from 1 PM to 3 PM, featuring tours, a presentation on the U.S. manned spaceflight programs of the 1960s (Mercury, Gemini and Apollo), historical displays, and meet-and-greet sessions with notable guests. The main event, from 3 PM to 5 PM, will include speeches on Warminster’s contributions to space exploration and the achievements of the former Naval Air Development Center, where the Johnsville Centrifuge was located.

Spaceflight historian Danny Parker will deliver the keynote address, sharing insights from his upcoming biography on Project Mercury astronaut Scott Carpenter.

Special guests include Kris Stoever, Scott Carpenter’s daughter; Robert Voas, PhD, who played a key role in selecting and training Project Mercury astronauts; Nancy Lowe, Project Mercury astronaut secretary; and historian Jeff Shesol, who authored a book on astronaut John Glenn in 2021. Their presence will provide attendees with rare, accounts of the early days of space exploration. 

For more details and to RSVP, visit the Southeastern Pennsylvania Cold War Historical Society’s Eventbrite page: Space Race in Southeastern PA.

PBS 39 Tempo – Show 519 – Seg 1 – Warminster Centrifuge