Rocket Town - Houston's Space Superstore!

Shop at Houston's Space Superstore for space souvenirs, memorabilia, and gifts!

528 W. Bay Area Blvd.
Suite 800
Webster, TX 77598
(281) 554-6446

Hours: Mon-Sat, 9am-9pm

Countdown Enterprises, Inc. is proud to announce the opening of Rocket Town™, a space souvenir and memorabilia superstore located just three miles west of NASA's Johnson Space Center. Rocket Town offers visitors a chance to shop in-person for the same large selection of space apparel, collectibles and gifts that Countdown has been offering online since 1997.

In addition to its wide assortment of products, Rocket Town offers interactive attractions designed to provide the public -- and kids in particular -- hands-on space experiences.

Visitors to Rocket Town can try performing an experiment in the store's Destiny Space Station Laboratory, a replica of the inside of the International Space Station's science module currently orbiting 240 miles above Earth. At Rocket Town's Mission Control Center, the public can watch live missions as they unfold in space, as well as preview space DVDs, videos and software available for sale. And, in the store's EVA Encounter, visitors will find themselves space walking for the ultimate photo opportunity.

Rocket Town is open Monday through Saturday, 9am to 9pm. Closed on Sundays.

Host your child's birthday party at Rocket Town.

Recently launched at Rocket Town...

Visitors to Rocket Town met the last man to leave new footprints on the Moon, Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt as he signed copies of his book Return to the Moon on Tuesday, July 18 at Rocket Town. In his book, Schmitt proposes that we begin planning, and now, for the establishment of human outposts on the Moon — not just as an exercise in technology and discovery, and not just as a way of fulfilling our destiny as explorers and pioneers.

Buzz Aldrin was back! After the success of our first event with the Apollo 11 moonwalker last June, we knew we had to have him return. Aldrin met with Rocket Town visitors and autographed their items on Saturday, May 27. Among those who attended were including STS-116 Lead Flight Director John Curry and Russian space historian Jim Oberg.

On March 25, collectSPACE.com hosted a panel discussion with the author and four of the contributors to the new book, Apollo Moon Missions: The Unsung Heroes.. The event, which took place at the Clear Lake City-County Freeman Branch Library, featured journalist Billy Watkins; Apollo 13 astronaut Fred Haise (who wrote the book's foreword); the daughter of the late Apollo 14 Command Module Pilot, Rosemary Roosa; Gemini and Apollo spacesuit technician Joe Schmitt; and Apollo mission planner Rodney Rose. Following their presentation, the panel guests took part in a Rocket Town-organized book signing of Apollo Moon Missions.

Space Shuttle astronaut Mike Mullane signed copies of his new autobiography Riding Rockets at Rocket Town on February 25, 2006. A member of the first group of shuttle astronauts, Mullane flew to space three times including on the maiden flight of orbiter Discovery and aboard the second mission to follow the loss of Challenger in 1986.

Astronaut Tom Jones shared his experiences Sky Walking at two events on Saturday, February 4, 2006. Jones first met with readers and signed copies of his new book at Rocket Town. Then, later the same day, Jones delivered a talk presented by collectSPACE.com at the Theodore Freeman Memorial Library in Clear Lake. Following his presentation, Jones answered questions from attendees and then signed copies of his memoir.

Alli Westover, author of the new children's book My Daddy Works At NASA, came to Rocket Town on November 19 to sign copies and share with young children what grownups do at NASA. Westover has trained astronauts and cosmonauts on various science experiments, developed medical equipment for the International Space Station, and tested the astronauts' health upon the landing of the Space Shuttle. She also had an opportunity to experience weightlessness on the KC-135 while performing science experiments.

Rocket Town proudly hosted historian James Hansen's only NASA Johnson Space Center-area book signings for his authorized biography, First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong. On November 12, 2005, Hansen shared his experiences working with Armstrong and writing First Man at a talk presented by collectSPACE at the Theodore Freeman Memorial Library in Clear Lake, that included a Q&A session and signing. Later that day, Hansen was at Rocket Town to autograph copies of the book that critics have called "a must for astronaut buffs and history readers alike".

On Saturday, September 10, Rocket Town hosted Space Shuttle astronaut and Florida Spaceport Authority Executive Director Winston Scott to sign copies of his new book, Reflections from Earth Orbit. Scott's fellow STS-87 crewmate Takao Doi and astronauts Donald Thomas, Robert Curbeam, Joan Higginbotham and Stephanie Wilson came by to visit.

On Saturday, June 11, Rocket Town hosted former NASA public affairs officer and U.S. Space Camp founder Ed Buckbee to sign copies of his new book, The Real Space Cowboys. Written with 'Original 7' Mercury astronaut Wally Schirra, Cowboys shares a first-person account of America's early space program through exclusive interviews and Buckbee's personal experiences.

Apollo 11 moonwalker Buzz Aldrin signed copies of his first children's book, Reaching for the Moon during an exclusive Houston-area signing on Monday, June 6. More than 500 people came to Rocket Town to meet Aldrin, who along with Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins, comprised the first lunar landing crew. The turnout was so strong and positive, that we hope to have Aldrin back for a return visit in the near future.

Cosmonaut Alexander Poleschuk signed photographs and flown artifact presentations on February 12, 2005. In 1993, Poleschuk comprised one-half of the Soyuz TM-16 mission to the Mir Space Station. During his 179 days aboard the outpost, Poleschuk performed two spacewalks totaling over 9 hours. Today, he serves as a department chief at RSC Energia.

Six-time Space Shuttle astronaut Story Musgrave met visitors on December 23, to sign copies of his favorite photographs taken from space, copies of his biography by author Anne Lenehan, and copies of his own DVD ("A Space Story") and CD ("Horizons"). Story is the only astronaut to have flown aboard all five Space Shuttle orbiters, including the maiden flight of Challenger and the Hubble Space Telescope repair mission.

Artist Pat Rawlings visited Rocket Town on Thursday, December 16 to sign copies of the 2005 SAIC Beyond Calendar that features his noted conceptional visions of the future of space flight. 2005 marks the 15th year for the highly-collectible SAIC calendar and the fifth and final year in the Beyond design series. More than just a wall calendar, each page features beautifully-printed reproductions of Pat Rawling's artwork, suitable for framing.

On October 14th, Rocket Town was proud to host "Evening With The Astronauts" to benefit the Association of Space Explorers, an international nonprofit professional and educational organization of over 300 individuals from 29 nations who have flown in space. As part of ASE-USA's first National Congress and World Space Week, a delegation of their astronaut members visited Rocket Town to meet the public. Astronauts in attendance included Karol "Bo" Bobko, Dan Brandenstein, Bob Crippen, Sen. Jake Garn, Owen Garriott, Hank Hartsfield, Rick Hieb, Rick Hauck, Jon McBride, Rusty Schweickart and Charlie Walker.

Scott Bleisath with Bob Crippen		Hauck, Bobko, Hartsfield, Garriott and Schweickart		Walker and Brandenstein
McBride, Garn and Hieb		Garriott and Schweickart

Aussie author Colin Burgess signed copies of his book Fallen Astronauts: Heroes Who Died Reaching For The Moon on September 18th. Joining him and his wife at Rocket Town, were Jeannie and Karen Bassett, wife and daughter of fallen astronaut Charlie Bassett. Also stopping by the store to greet Colin was Apollo 7 astronaut Walt Cunningham, who praised Fallen Astronauts for bringing "these old colleagues and friends of mine back to life."

Congratulations to all the participants in our first ISS Crystal Growing Contest on August 21, which was judged by International Space Station Expedition 2 crewmember James Voss! A veteran of five space flights, Voss shared what it was like to live a "day in the life" of a space station resident - complete with space gloves, space food and even his no-rinse shampoo and toothbrush! After signing autographs for the crowd in attendance, Voss selected three winning crystals in three categories:

Best Color
Michael Johnson

Best Structure
Rachael Halick

Overall Favorite
Zachary Medrano

Space Shuttle Commander and Ansari X PRIZE Chief Judge Rick Searfoss signed autographs and posed for photographs on July 24. Searfoss piloted two Space Shuttle missions and commanded a third, with over 939 hours in space and 5,400 hours flying time in 61 different types of aircraft. In April of last year, Searfoss was named judge of the X PRIZE, a contest to award $10 million to the first team to fly a privately financed reusable three-person spaceship to an altitude of 62 miles-and repeat the trip within two weeks.

Authors Sy Liebergot ("Apollo EECOM: Journey of a Lifetime") and Neal Thompson ("Light This Candle: The Life and Times of Alan Shepard") visited Rocket Town on July 20, for a special book signing on the 35th anniversary of the first manned lunar landing. In "Light This Candle", veteran journalist Thompson delivers a portrait of the complete Shepard, from his childhood through his selection as a Mercury astronaut and beyond. "Apollo EECOM" presents the life story of Liebergot, a former Apollo Flight Controller.

Mad Science's Combustible Chris gave Rocket Town visitors July 17 a real BLAST as he demonstrated the fun facts behind air power, air pressure and combustion during two live Mad Science shows. Kids visiting Rocket Town had an opportunity to ride a real hovercraft! Thanks to all who came and watch for future appearances by Scientific Sally, Combustible Chris and the entire Mad Science team at Rocket Town!

The first person to explore both space and the sea, Mercury 7 astronaut Scott Carpenter signed autographs and posed for photographs on Saturday, July 10. Carpenter piloted the second American manned orbital flight, Mercury-Atlas 7, on May 24, 1962. Inside the Aurora 7 spacecraft, he orbited the Earth three times. In 1965, Carpenter participated in the Navy's Man-in the-Sea Project as an Aquanaut in the SEALAB II program off the coast of La Jolla, California. During the 45-day experiment, Carpenter spent 30 days working on the ocean floor.

Astronauts @ Rocket Town