One of America’s great scientific achievements will be celebrated this Saturday when the St. John Historical Society, Clean Islands International and the V. I. Environmental Resource Station (VIERS) at Lameshur celebrate the end of the Tektite 2 project. Activities start at 10 a.m. Saturday at VIERS.
The Tektite program was the first scientists-in-the-sea program sponsored nationally. The Tektite habitat was an underwater laboratory, placed in Great Lameshur Bay, in 1969 and again in 1970. The second project, sponsored in part by NASA, provided critical information on the psychological effects of working in closed environments, similar to that of spacecrafts, according to a Wikipedia entry on the Tektite habitat.
VIERS served as the base camp for the two Tektite projects.
“It’s going to be entertaining and educational,” Historical Society member Bruce Schoonover said.
The festivities begin with a video presentation by Astronaut Commander Scott Carpenter on “The U.S. Response to Sputnik.” According to Schoonover, the launch of Sputnik on Oct. 4, 1957 by the Soviets was one of those extraordinary events in history that would have ramifications far beyond simply placing the first satellite into space. It ignited the space race, and was largely why the Tektite project began.
“This is not only a fascinating piece of this island’s history, but it is an important part of our nation’s history during the turbulent 1960s. Underlying this project was our country’s desire to regain its preeminence in science and technology, which the Soviet Union was clearly challenging,” Schoonover said.
The video will be followed by a PowerPoint presentation on the Tektite program by Schoonover. Schoonover, a part-time St. John resident, updated material he showcased at a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the start of Tektite 1. It was held Feb. 15, 2009. He will also provide a preliminary look at the video documentary that St. John residents Steve Simonsen, Bill Stelzer and he are developing on Project Tektite.
A panel of Tektite aquanauts will discuss their recollections about this historic scientific project and answer questions. Schoonover expects John VanDerwalker and Alina Szmant to attend. VanDerwalker was one of four Tektite I aquanauts as well as the scientific research manager and aquanaut for Tektite II. He later managed environmental programs for the U.S. Interior Department, the U.S. State Department and the Nebraska-based Platte River Trust. Szmant was one of five female aquanauts who participated in a Tektite II mission. She is currently a professor of marine biology at the University of North Carolina. Schoonover anticipates other aquanauts and support staff will also be on hand.
Following the presentation by the aquanauts and Schoonover, the Tektite Underwater Habitat Museum will be open to the public. Recent additions to the museum include new artifact displays and video presentations. The museum’s collections are still growing and donations of photographs, slides, films, home movies, newspaper clippings, and other Tektite related objects are appreciated. If you are not ready to part with your personal items related to Tektite, they can also be scanned or photographed at VIERS, Schoonover said.
An afternoon snorkel to the habitat site is also planned. The habitat was located in Beehive Cove, just outside Great Lameshur Bay. Tours of the VIERS environmental education facility will also be offered.
The Tektite project had two parts and ran in 1969 and 1970. The program was orchestrated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Departments of Navy and Interior and General Electric’s Missile and Space Division.
Project Tektite I’s seafloor program was conducted by four aquanauts from Feb. 15 to April 15, 1969. For Project Tektite II, 53 aquanauts participated in 11 missions lasting 13 to 20 days each from April 4 to Nov. 6, 1970. Over 500 people from numerous government agencies, universities and other places of high learning—both from within the United States and around the world—participated in the program.
VIERS will serve a light lunch at $10 per person. Make lunch reservations at jamieirving@viers.org or by calling 776-6721 for reservations or for information on parking.
