INTERNATIONAL SPACE OLYMPICS
The International Space Olympics will be held in Korolev, Russia, from October 16 to 28, 2007. Six Virginia students will participate in the competition and present their space projects. This trip will provide cultural experiences, as well as activities based in science and mathematics. Korolev, Russia, is the center of the Russian space industry near Moscow. The students will compete in the Olympics by orally presenting their research projects and participating in selected tests in physics and mathematics.

During the 10-day competition students will:

• Present their own technical, economic, and social projects;
• Take part in competitions involving physics, mathematics, and computer science;
• Meet Russian cosmonauts and space industry specialists;
• Visit Mission Control Center and meet Russian cosmonauts;
• Visit Star City and the Space Museum to see space objects, including Yuri Gagarin's capsule and the first Sputnik, and to go inside the space station and space crafts models;
• Visit the Kremlin, cathedrals, Stanislavsky Theatre, and Moscow Circus;
• Visit Korolev schools to meet local students and learn about their culture and lifestyles.

The competition will be judged by leading Russian scientists. The students whose presentations are chosen as winners will receive special prizes and will have their projects published in science journals.

Share the Journey!
Students participating in the Olympics will share their experiences with teachers and students in Virginia through the Internet. Students competing in the Olympics will provide daily logs of their experiences. These logs will include pictures and journal entries describing the competition and their personal experiences. Other resources housed on this Web site include background information on the students and their projects and links to additional related sites. WorldNet: Virginia is a project of the Virginia Department of Education and Prince William County Public Schools. The Web site can be accessed through the Virginia Department of Education Web site at: http://www.pen.k12.va.us or directly at http://www.pwnet.org

For more information on the International Space Olympics, visit their Web site at http://www.spacedu.org.

The Virginia Department of Education, Ministry of Education in the Moscow region, and Education Department of Korolev are working as partners to provide this opportunity for Virginia students.

Korolev, Russia

The city of Korolev is situated approximately 6 km northeast of Moscow. Until recently, it was known as Kalinigrad and, for many years, it has been the center of the Russian space industry. Korolev, which has a population of 170,000, shares many cultural activities with Moscow because of its proximity to the capital. In 1998, the city was renamed in honor of S. P. Korolev, an engineer and father of the Russian space industry. One of the principal enterprises of the city is the Energiya Rocket Space Corporation that designs and manufactures much of the hardware involved in space exploration.

The Mission Control Center, Foreign Relations Department, and Education Department of the city have hosted the International Space Olympics, a competition for 14- to 18-year-old students, for approximately 12 years. The competitors are predominantly from the Moscow Region, but also include students from England, Germany, Greece, Australia, Kazakhstan, and the United States. The International Space Olympics will help further international links and may also motivate other students to embark on study and careers in science and engineering. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for students who will be seeing aspects of Russia's space program.