Isaac Becomes an Astronaut for a Day

Ever since his first trip to Hawaii with his family before his battle with leukemia, Isaac has been patiently waiting to go back and visit again, especially with the hopes of looking through a big telescope to see space. Dressed in his space suit, Isaac was ready for liftoff on his wish trip! 

Isaac and his family got to experience the Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii, where Isaac sat right in the middle of the planetarium and chose where he “went” in the universe. Making his way through the cosmos, Isaac’s mother said, “We first went to the surface of Mars and then out of our galaxy and saw other galaxies. It was incredible. When we went into the canoe they took us right to our house in Tampa.”

Isaac could hardly contain his happiness as his journey through the stars in Hawaii continued at the Canada France Hawaii Telescope. There he discovered what it meant to be an astronomer/scientist by working on their computers at the headquarters. With their help, Isaac was able to make the dome of the telescope move and watch all of it on the screens. “This was priceless,” is what his mother says about the experience’s impact on Isaac. “Isaac felt important and he was fully engaged with the computer screens and the information about the telescope at the headquarters.”