Year In Review (archive)


Annual Report: Awards

Written by: developer

The Space Foundation annually honors outstanding individuals and organizations for achievements in space exploration, advocacy, education, innovation and accomplishment. The 2011 awards were presented throughout the 27th National Space Symposium in April.

The General James E. Hill Lifetime Space Achievement Award, the highest honor we bestow, went to Dr. Charles Elachi, director of the Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) and vice president of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., for a career that has included research and development of numerous flight missions and instruments for Earth observation, planetary exploration and astrophysics.

The Douglas S. Morrow Public Outreach Award, which honors an individual, team or organization that has made significant contributions to public awareness of, and support for, space programs, went to three journalists - Jay Barbree, NBC News; Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press; and William Harwood, CBS News - for their extraordinary coverage of the Space Shuttle program.

The Space Achievement Award, which recognizes breakthrough space technologies, programs or product successes representing critical milestones in the evolution of space exploration and development, was presented to SpaceX for becoming the first commercial company to re-enter a spacecraft from low-Earth orbit, and Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) for its use of light, highly portable, satellite terminals to provide worldwide coverage to aid communications and save lives during natural disasters and emergencies.

The Alan Shepard Technology in Education Award, presented by the Space Foundation, the Astronauts Memorial Foundation and NASA for outstanding contributions to technology education by K-12 educators or district-level education personnel, was given to Charles County Public Schools Superintendent James E. Richmond for the broad scope of projects and programs he has created to promote STEM education and develop a future workforce of scientists and engineers.

For the full story, you can now see Quantum Leap: 2011 Annual Report on the Space Foundation's brand new website. Just click here, click the Annual Report cover on the left and enjoy.

Plus, watch www.SpaceFoundation.org, www.NationalSpaceSymposium.org and Space Watch for announcements of the 2012 winners.
This article is part of Space Watch: February 2012 (Volume: 11, Issue: 2).


Posted in Year In Review (archive)