There’s no question that California is the leader in the Maker movement, but there are signs that Texas is moving to catch up.

The membership-based TechShop opened its first Texas location this month, in the Austin-Rock Rock area. The new TechShop is located conveniently next door to a Lowe’s superstore and even shares a common door, making it super-easy for makers to go for building suppliers. No additional Texas TechShop locations have been announced, but multiple sources tell us a Houston TechShop may be in the works.

Houston hackerspace TX/RX Labs is moving into a new home. An open house scheduled for last week was canceled because the plumbing wasn’t quite ready.

Austin, Texas was home to one of the first Maker Faires. Mini Maker Faires continue to take place in Texas on a regular basis. One is scheduled to take place in Houston at the Stafford Center on January 19. Another will take place at the Discovery Science Place in Tyler, Texas on March 23.

Austin is also home to the Tinkering School, which offers classes and summer camps for small makers.

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We start them young in Texas. Last week, Citizens in Space worked with folks from XCOR Aerospace and NASA to do a Suborbital-Experiment Design Workshop for elementary students in Killeen. Afterward, we uploaded some photos to a friend aboard the International Space Station.

Citizens in Space will be present at the Conference for the Advancement of Science Teaching in Corpus Christi November 8-10, at the Mini Maker Faire in Houston January 19, and the Space Exploration Educators Conference in Houston February 7-9. There are more exciting events coming up in Texas, which we’ll tell you about it the future.