"Space is an exciting place to do science," Grindlay added. "Being in space is where we can do science that we can't do on the ground."
While many club members concentrate in the sciences, club officers emphasize that anyone can join. Robbins, for example, is a social-science concentrator.
"It was just something that had been in my head since I was little," Robbins said.
According to Ross, many people join the club to learn about "things that aren't taught at Harvard." And among members of the space community, club membership is an asset to any resume. The club hopes to provide even more opportunities for students to learn about space by persuading Harvard administration to offer a new course this spring.
"It would basically talk about the history of the space industry," Ross said. But plans for the course are still tentative, he added.
Between 20 and 40 students attend each meeting, although more find it more comfortable to limit their participation to cyberspace--almost 200 people are on the space club's mailing list.