JPL Opens Its Doors – 90‑Year Celebration, Free Tickets Aug 29

JPL is about to open its doors for a public open house in October, celebrating 90 years of space exploration. The event runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 10 and 11. It’s a rare chance to walk around NASA’s famous Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The lab, run by Caltech, started back in 1936 at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains. Over the decades it has launched America’s first satellite, Explorer 1, and helped build NASA. Its history includes managing Voyager, Galileo, Cassini, the Mars rovers, Europa Clipper and many other historic missions.

Visitors can wander through four themed zones: missions that changed the world, the road from Moon to Mars, in‑flight tech, and a makerspace. They’ll see the Space Flight Operations Facility, the Spacecraft Assembly Facility, a machine shop, and full‑size models of Perseverance, Voyager and Galileo. There are also tiny robots, lunar rovers and rescue bots on display, plus a look inside the Microdevices Lab.

Tickets are free but limited, opening on August 29 on a first‑come‑first‑serve basis, with a cap of five per person. They can’t be transferred or sold. For details, go to jpl.nasa.gov/news/explore-jpl-to-take-place-oct-10-11/.