Buzz Lightyear Goes to Space (really) and Toy Story Mania! launches at Disney World

Buzz Lightyear -- the bravely delusional astronaut toy from Toy Story movies -- is going into space, for real. NASA will send a 12-inch tall Buzz Lightyear action figure on mission STS-124 on the Space Shuttle Discovery. Buzz will blast off from Kennedy Space Center at 5:02 pm on May 31, on his way to the International Space Station. And you can bet that a whole lot of school math and sciences classes will take an extra interest in the ISS while Buzz is there -- especially when he experiments with flying in zero gravity. (Read more about Buzz and NASA's "Toys in Space" project.)

Buzz's launch to-- I can't help saying it -- "infinity and beyond" coincides with the launch of Toy Story Mania! at Disney World: a rootin-tootin' target-shootin' 4-D ride that's fun for all ages. Toddlers can hit the big targets; teens can find the challenges and rack up big scores; parents/grandparents can be hotshots or lame shots -- that's the Disney magic in action, i.e. fun for everyone. (Disneyland California will get one, too.)

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