Visiting space at the Noordung Center in Vitanje

The Center of Space Technologies - Herman Potočnik Noordung is located in the small town of **Vitanje **in north-eastern Slovenia. The remote location is perfect for a day trip, where you can **visit **the fascinating world of space and discover the technology and interesting stories behind some of the greatest achievements in the history of humankind. The main goal of the Noordung Center is to research, collect and share the knowledge of space and its technologies to the public in a way that connects science, economy, tourism and art. Using this strategy, some of the most important and demanding human achievements are introduced, along with interesting exhibitions of the history and development of high technologies, important scientists and their ground-breaking ideas, as well as other interesting concepts.

The man behind it all 

Within the framework of the Noordung Center, permanent and temporary exhibitions, conferences and study activities take place. The main exhibition is dedicated to the great Herman Potočnik Noordung, a Slovenian rocket scientist and pioneer of space science, after which the space center was named. In the exhibition, you will learn about his interesting life, important works and ideas, as well as the only book he ever wrote, with which he left an important mark in the history of the development of space technology. For a moment, you can even return to the year of 1929 and be greeted by Herman Potočnik Noordung himself through a ten-minute projection, where the image of him creatively and interestingly explains a short segment from his book. 

Become an astronaut 

Probably the most exciting thing you will find at the Noordung Centre is a flying simulator called *Electra VR. You can try it and experience the feeling of flying in a space ship and observing the galaxies and the Earth from above. You can choose from three different types of planes and get to see through the eyes of astronauts. Doesn’t the observing of the Earth surface, its mountains, lakes and oceans from a distance of more than 80 kilometres sound truly incredible? Other types of VR experiences are also available, like walking through the planets and galaxies of our solar system and getting additional information about Herman Potočnik Noordung *and his idea of a geostationary space station called "bivalno kolo".

You can visit the **Noordung Centre in Vitanje **for the price of seven euros and explore it by yourself or book a 50-minute-long guided tour and be introduced to the main ideas and concepts of the institution. The **center is also accessible to the physically impaired and is suitable for all types of visitors, no matter their age, as new facts and knowledge about space **never get boring.