Ellison S. Onizuka Space Center

Honoring A Hawaiian Hero

Dedicated to the memory of Colonel Ellison S. Onizuka, the Space Center will include exhibit spaces, an auditorium, classrooms, and conference rooms. The design emphasizes flexibility of the exhibit and multi-purpose spaces. 

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An open floor plan consists of three contemporary interpretations of the “box” that varies in scale surrounded by an exterior courtyard. It accentuates the interior and exterior connection to the sky and introduces controlled natural daylight into interior spaces.

Astronaut Ellison S. Onizuka was born in Kealakekua-Kona, Hawaii, and died on January 28, 1986  aboard the Orbiter Challenger when it exploded one minute and 13 seconds after launch. In addition to special honors presented to him during his lifetime, he was posthumously promoted to the rank of Colonel and awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

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Astronaut Ellison S. Onizuka was born in Kealakekua, Kona, Hawaii, and died on January 28, 1986 with the crew on board the Orbiter Challenger when it exploded one minute and 13 seconds after launch.

As part of the site design, an exterior plaza near the entry will serve as a pedestrian circulation node to adjacent public functions including the airport terminal, the public parking lot, a walking trail, and a petroglyph field.