SPACE FOUNDATION PRESS RELEASE

To the delight of generations of Star Trek fans, the Space Foundation has chosen Leonard Nimoy to inspire the audience at the 2010 Space Technology Hall of Fame Dinner April 15. The dinner is the capstone event of the 26th National Space Symposium, which runs April12-15 at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“Leonard Nimoy has inspired people around the world to explore the wonders of science, space, and technology through his television and motion picture portrayals of Star Trek’s Mr. Spock and through his career as an actor, author, director, and an advocate,” said Space Foundation CEO Elliot Pulham. “That spirit of exploration and discovery is echoed in the Space Technology Hall of Fame, which annually recognizes technologies from space that now improve life here on Earth.

“You might say that we both share the same goal,” Pulham continued. “To live long and prosper.”

Nimoy has enjoyed a long acting and directing career since gaining worldwide fame during Star Trek’s run during the 1960s. From the original series, through the original motion pictures, to the 2009 blockbuster film Star Trek, he has brought dignity and intelligence to one of the most revered characters in science fiction. He is also an accomplished writer, photographer, speaker, and voice actor, and is active in the Jewish community.

Since 1988, the Space Technology Hall of Fame, in cooperation with NASA, has honored those who transform technology originally developed for space exploration into products and services that help improve the quality of life here on Earth. Dozens of technologies and hundreds of individuals and organizations have since been recognized. Visit www.SpaceTechHallofFame.org for more detail.

Presented by the Space Foundation, the 26th National Space Symposium brings together all sectors of space – civil, commercial, national security, new space entrepreneurship, and finance – to highlight accomplishments and address opportunities and issues facing the global space community today.

The Symposium offers presentations, panels, forums, and workshops covering all aspects of space, plus a number of special dinners and luncheons, and presentation of several prestigious space-related awards. The Symposium concludes with the Space Technology Hall of Fame Dinner – now in its 23rd year. Hall of Fame inductees will be announced soon.

The National Space Symposium’s top allure to attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, and speakers – of which there were nearly 8,000 in 2009 – is as a venue for networking and conducting meaningful business. Said Pulham, “The Space Foundation offers each potential registrant the extraordinary opportunity to ‘Attend and Prosper.’”

Online registration and more information, including agenda, speakers, and exhibitors, are available at www.NationalSpaceSymposium.org.

Following a National Space Symposium tradition, the 26th edition of the premier gathering of the global space community will feature a panel comprising former leaders of a major space organization. The agenda for the 26th National Space Symposium includes three decades of directors of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), an agency in the Department of Defense (DoD) that develops and operates overhead reconnaissance systems and conducts intelligence-related activities essential for U.S. national security.

Slated for April 12-15 at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo., the 26th National Space Symposium will cover all the critical facets of the space industry – presented by the people who are making the decisions, running the companies, establishing the policies, and setting the course for the future.

Moderated by Gen. Thomas S. Moorman, Jr., USAF (Retired), chairman of the Space Foundation Board of Directors, the NRO panel comprises:

• Hans Mark, Ph.D., under secretary of the Air Force/secretary of the Air Force and NRO director, 1977-1979
• Edward C. Aldridge, Jr., under secretary of the Air Force/secretary of the Air Force and NRO director, 1981-1988
• Martin C. Faga, assistant secretary of the Air Force for space and NRO director, 1989-1993
• Jeffrey K. Harris, assistant secretary of the Air Force for space and NRO director, 1994-1996
• Keith R. Hall, assistant secretary of the Air Force for space and NRO director, 1997-2001
• Peter B. Teets, under secretary of the Air Force and NRO director, 2001-2005
• Donald M. Kerr, Ph.D., assistant to the secretary of the Air Force (Intelligence Space Technology) and NRO director, 2005-2007
• Scott F. Large, assistant to the secretary of the Air Force (Intelligence and Space Technology) and NRO director, 2007-2009

Previous National Space Symposia have featured panels comprising former leadership of the U.S. Space Command, the U.S. Strategic Command and NASA.

In addition to the panel, the agenda will also spotlight the NRO with a featured presentation by Gen. Bruce Carlson, USAF, (Retired), current director of the NRO.

Headquartered in Chantilly, Va., the NRO was established in 1961 as a classified DoD agency. Declassified in 1992, the NRO is one of 16 intelligence community agencies. It is a hybrid organization, consisting of some 3,000 personnel, jointly staffed by members of the armed services, Central Intelligence Agency and DoD civilian personnel. The director of the NRO reports to both the director of national intelligence and the Secretary of Defense and also serves as the assistant to the secretary of the Air Force (Intelligence Space Technology).

The 26th National Space Symposium, includes presentations, panels, workshops, and forums covering all aspects of space, a number of special dinners and luncheons, and presentations of space-related awards.

The Exhibit Center, sponsored by AMERICOM Government Services (AGS), is already sold out and a number of key sponsorships have been taken. In addition to AGS, major co-sponsors include Northrop Grumman for the spectacular Opening Ceremony, and Boeing for the Corporate Sponsorship Dinner. Other Symposium co-sponsors to date are ATK, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Cisco Systems, Inc., GMV, General Dynamics, International Space University, Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, Raytheon, SAIC, and United Space Alliance.

Additional sponsorship opportunities are available; interested companies should contact Sponsorships@SpaceFoundation.org. To be put on the waiting list for exhibit space, contact Exhibitor@SpaceFoundation.org.

Biggest players in space industry gather in Colorado
9news.com

An international who’s-who of the space industry is at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs this week at the 25th annual National Space Symposium. The biggest players in civilian and military aerospace are attending, including NASA execs, the director of the European Space Agency and even one of China’s Taikonauts.

China’s Shenzhou 7 Manned Space Flight Team, which packed a number of “firsts” for the Chinese space program into a single mission, will receive the 2009 Space Achievement Award at the Symposium tonight.

A delegation from China led by Dr. Zhou Jianping, chief designer of the China Manned Space Program, and including Taikonaut Zhai Zhigang will accept the award.

In addition, Dr. Zhou will participate in the symposium’s International Space Agencies Look to The Next Space Age panel discussion on April 2 where he will discuss China’s current and future plans for manned space flight.

Read the full story.