Outer Space Party

Fans of the final frontier will love this outer space-themed party kit infused with fun,
fascinating facts from our friends at Mental Floss. It offers the out-of-this-world experience
of a party that celebrates your planetary prowess (did you know that before Uranus was
Uranus, it was named George?) and celestial smarts.
Each part of the kit provides simple yet detailed directions for crafting decorations, games,
and special finishing details. That'll be one small step for you, and one giant leap for your
party guests!

- twine
- hole punch

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 Space Shuttle and Parachute Cake Toppers

WHAT YOU NEED: - scissors

- 2 large wooden skewers
(10 inches or longer)
- 8 toothpicks
- non-toxic glue or tape
(a glue stick or quick-drying glue is recommended)

HOW TO ASSEMBLE CAKE TOPPER:

Cut out the cake topper along the black line. Fold the fact tab on the dotted line. To
attach the skewers, glue or tape them to the back of the topper (see image 2). Glue
the back of the fact tab and attach it to the back of the cake topper (see image 3).

1) 2) (back)

tape glue

(back)
3) 4)

HOUSTON WE HAVE CAKE!

HOUSTON,

HOW TO ASSEMBLE CUPCAKE TOPPERS:

Cut out the cupcake toppers. Glue or tape the toothpick in the middle of the back
side of the parachute so that the bottom of the parachute reaches about halfway
down the toothpick. Add glue or double-sided tape to each side of the cupcake
topper (see image 2). Fold the sides together along the fold line to create the
parachute.
1) 2) 3)
fold

fold

glue
 Intergalactic Gas Bill
The fuel bill for a space shuttle would make even the most hardened SUV
owner weep. Once in orbit, a space shuttle must go at least 17,500 miles
an hour to stay in orbit (depending on the shuttle's altitude). NASA says
that the shuttle and its tank carry 835,958 gallons of hydrogen, oxygen,
and other liquid propellants. Each of the solid rocket boosters that help
push the shuttle up each have over a million pounds of solid fuel in them.
HOUSTON WE HAVE CAKE!
HOUSTON,
fold
fold
Planet Straw Toppers
 Jupiter
Underneath a thick crust of
ice, Jupiter’s moon Europa is
covered by an ocean with more
water than Earth contains.
Scientists believe Europa is
our best bet for finding
extraterrestrial life.

Earth
In 1990, Voyager 1 took a
picture of the Earth from a
record distance of 4 billion
miles away. Astronomer Carl
Sagan named this portrait
“Pale Blue Dot.”

Saturn
NASA discovered a massive
storm on Saturn in 2010 – it was
180,000 miles long (almost 23x the
size of the Earth!) with wild
temperature fluctuations from
the vortex inside it.

Mars
On August 6, 2013, the
Curiosity Rover played
“Happy Birthday” to celebrate
the one-year anniversary of its
landing on Mars. It was the
first time a song was played
on another planet!

Venus
Scientists believe
Venus may have once been
very similar to Earth, but a
runaway greenhouse effect
caused its oceans to boil off
and evaporate and filled the
atmosphere with toxic
amounts of greenhouse
gases.
 Neptune
Neptune’s surface gravity
is about the same as Earth’s,
so if you could stand on the
surface of Neptune, it’d feel a
lot like standing on Earth!

Uranus
Before Uranus was Uranus,
it was called Planet George
by its discoverer, William
Herschel, in honor of King
George the Third.

Mercury
Most of Mercury’s
craters are named after
famous deceased artists,
writers and composers. Bach,
Beethoven, and Brahms are
just a few of the names you
might recognize…
Draw Your Galaxy Placemat
 ENGAGE T O T H E U NIV E R SE
ROCKETS O W
D
IN
W

U R
YO
The Station of Youth
Because of something called
time dilation, time actually moves
slower on the International Space
Station. Not by much – but it is
measurable. After 6 months in
space, astronaut Ed Lu found
that he had aged less (by about
0.007 seconds) than everyone
else on the ground.

LIGHT SPEED

WARP SPEED

CRUISE CONTROL
 Asteroid Belt Bunting

WHAT YOU NEED: - scissors

- string or twine
(5-7 feet, depending on asteroid spacing)
- non-toxic glue or tape
(a glue stick or other quick-drying glue is best)
- hole punch
(1/8 inch hole punch recommended but standard 1/4 inch works too)

HOW TO ASSEMBLE BUNTING:

Cut out the bunting components along the black lines. Use a hole punch to punch
two holes where indicated. Thread a length of string through each hole, making
sure the string is behind the printed side. If the asteroids are sliding around on the
string, tie a knot to keep the pieces from shifting. Move down the string, attaching
components 1-2 inches from each other.

1) 2)

3)

4)

TITLE
Astronomers think that
when our solar system was
forming, another planet tried
to form in between Mars and
Jupiter, but since Jupiter's
gravitational forces were so
strong, the planet was never
able to c e and it
tered
aster
Jupiter
 Jealous Jupiterk
Astronomers think that
when our solar system was
forming, another planet
tried to form in between Mars
and Jupiter, but Jupiter's
gravitational forces kept
the pieces from joining
together, and it remained
as scattered
asteroids.
Mars
Space Explorer Party Hats
 It's not easy being an astronaut. Normal, everyday tasks can become
a challenge when you're in orbit – like eating bread. Bread isn't
Space Snacking
allowed in space because the crumbs go everywhere, so specially
packaged tortillas are an astronaut's best option for carbo-loading.

extender strip 1
glue
glue

extender strip 2
glue
glue

ER

CE EXPLOR
A
SP
 Hold onto those protractors! The ancient Babylonians
may have been the earliest space explorers, using
Ancient Exploration
geometry to chart the movements of the planet Jupiter
starting from as early as 350 BCE.

extender strip 1
glue
glue

extender strip 2
glue
glue

ER

CE EXPLOR
A
SP
Moon Landing Photobooth Props

Pluto’s Demotion
On January 5, 2005, an
astronomer discovered the dwarf
planet Eris and immediately
created a controversy: Eris is 27%
more massive than Pluto. So is Eris
the 10th planet, or is Pluto not a
major planet? The International
Astronomical Union decided to
demote Pluto instead of
making Eris the tenth
planet.
 Space Food
Freeze-dried "astronaut ice cream"
only went on one space mission: the
Apollo 7 crew took some with them during
their 11-day orbit in 1968, but it was too
crumbly to be practical.

Pluto’s Demotion
On January 5, 2005, an
astronomer discovered the
dwarf planet Eris and immediately
created a controversy: Eris is
27% larger than Pluto. So is Eris
the 10th planet, or is Pluto not a
major planet? The International
Astronomical Union decided
to demote Pluto instead of
making Eris the tenth
planet.
 The Uncommon Globe

MAN ON MOON
‘It’s very pretty up here . . . a fine, soft surface’
Talking Neil Armstrong A giant leap
into taking a first step for mankind

35,000 fill Nathan Phillips Square

Luna orbiting
for Toronto’s lunar landing party
closer to moon
landing possible

Space Medal
The Congressional
Space Medal of Honor was
created to recognize any
astronaut who makes great
contributions to the United
States and to mankind. Neil
Armstrong was the first
to receive this medal
in 1978.
‘Pin the North Star’ and more games
 The Neglected North Star
According to the Royal Naval Academy, 57 stars are handy for
navigation – but would you believe that the official roster of
navigational stars leaves out one very important star in the sky?
That's right – Polaris, the North Star, is not on the official list!
Black Hole Treatbags
 glue

er w
panel 2
panel 1

glue glue

panel 1
panel 2
Moon Plaque Guestbook
HERE PEOPLE FROM THE PLANET EARTH CAME TOGETHER
TO CELEBRATE _______________ ON _______________.
WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND.

NEIL A. ARMSTRONG MICHAEL COLLINS EDWIN E. ALDRIN. JR.

ASTRONAUT ASTRONAUT ASTRONAUT

RICHARD NIXON
PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ASTRONAUT

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin left a plaque on the

Moon Plaque ladder of their lunar lander to commemorate the first
man on the moon.