Dear , 

Outer space is not just humanity’s future: it's a call to rethink life on Earth right now. In zero gravity, what is standing up? What is lying down? What does it mean to be unable to walk if no one there is walking? How does that shift our understanding of disability?

We are excited to announce the launch of Mission: AstroAccess, a program bringing a diverse group of disabled space enthusiasts on a historic ZERO-G parabolic flight! Participants will complete targeted tasks during the program’s flight to help answer basic questions about how disabled people can live and work in outer space. Mission: AstroAccess’ crew of disabled volunteers will take flight on October 17th, 2021, as the first step in a progression towards increasing diversity in space and the greater STEM field. 

As a human race, our most intractable challenges—poverty, climate change, pandemic—happen on a global scale. Space exploration puts that scale into perspective and calls us to reimagine what divides and connects us as people. When we reached the moon and the world was able to see our pale blue dot from afar, we realized how important it was to protect it. While people with disabilities make up 26% of the US population, they are severely underrepresented in our STEM workforce—only 8.4% of employed scientists and engineers are people with disabilities. Through this flight, we hope to shift perspectives on what is possible. 

Mission: AstroAccess serves an additional purpose—while traditional physical barriers are lifted in space, accidents resulting in some form of disability are inevitable during extended missions in space’s dangerous environment. We are dedicated to advancing disability inclusion in space exploration, not just for the benefit of marginalized communities, but for the benefit of all humankind. The tasks conducted during this program will help inform accessible design to make extended space travel safer for everyone.

Applications for crew members are open now through August 15! Any disabled adult living within the US can apply. We need your help spreading the word—can you forward this email to five friends?

Mission: AstroAccess is a project of the SciAccess Initiative, and is conducted in partnership with Yuri’s Night, the Zero Gravity Corporation, Gallaudet University, the San Francisco LightHouse for the Blind, Disabled American Veterans, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Stanford Medicine Abilities Coalition, Aspen Science Center, Disabled for Accessibility in Space, the Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination, and Space for Humanity.