CONTENTS

 

 

Join Us for the Aerospace Latin America Lecture Series

 

During its flight, NASA's Galileo spacecraft returned images of the Earth and Moon. Separate images of the Earth and Moon were combined to generate this view.

 

Over the course of 2025, the NASA History Office is presenting a seminar series on the topic of Aerospace Latin America. This series will explore the origins, evolution, and historical context of aerospace in the region since the dawn of the Space Age, canvasing a broad range of topics including aerospace infrastructure development, space policy and law, Earth science applications, and much more.

 

The first two presentations, listed below, will be held on Thursdays at 1 p.m. CST (2 p.m. EST/11 a.m. PST) via Microsoft Teams. Details on how to join the meetings are provided here:

 

February 6 at 1 p.m. CST

Stephen Buono (University of Chicago)

“Governing the Moon: A History”

 

In this talk, Steve Buono will provide a nuanced history of the unratified Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, more commonly known as the Moon Treaty. Buono will discuss the treaty's deep origins, the contributions of international space lawyers, the details of the negotiating process, the role played by the United States in shaping the final text, and the contributions of the treaty's single most important author, Argentine lawyer, Aldo Armando Cocca.

 

Microsoft Teams Need help?

Join the meeting now

Meeting ID: 216 758 281 689

Passcode: 6Gf3hy3Z

 

Dial in by phone

+1 256-715-9946,,895766289# United States, Huntsville

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Phone conference ID: 895 766 289#

 

ALERT: All meeting participants consent to, and will abide by, the terms and conditions viewable at the LEGAL link below. No ITAR/EAR content display or sharing without consent from Export Control.

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February 20 at 1 p.m. CST

Peter Soland (University of Houston—Downtown)

“A God’s Eye View: Aviators and the Re-Conquest of Latin America”

 

Brazilian flyer Alberto Santos-Dumont incarnated turn-of-the-century enthusiasm for aviation. The wealthy, stylish, thrill-seeking inventor possessed a maniacal drive to push the limits of human and technological achievement. Aviation enthusiasts across the globe mistook his 1906 flight as the first aerodyne flight in world history. Louis Cartier crafted the original pilot’s wristwatch for him, as a personal favor. Poet Eduardo das Neves immortalized him in the popular anthem, “A Conquista do Ar” (The Conquest of the Air): one of Brazil’s earliest popular audio recordings. Santos Dumont established the archetype of the aviator as a modern conquistador. Although he is best remembered for inspiring generations of pilots to take to the skies, nation builders with grand, modernizing visions for Latin American societies were likewise deeply influenced by his legacy. Peter Soland’s talk scrutinizes the aviator-conquistador metaphor. It examines airplane pilots as personifying high modernism and the technological sublime in Latin America from the turn of the century through the early Space Age, when spaceships and astronauts eclipsed airplanes and aviators.

 

Peter Soland is a scholar of Latin American History specializing in modern Mexico and Latin America. He earned his doctorate in History from the University of Arizona in 2016. and subsequently accepted a position as a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Center for Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO during the 2016-2017 academic year. Most recently, he was an Assistant Professor of Latin American History at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, MO. His first book, Mexican Icarus: Aviation and the Modernization of Mexican Identity (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2023) examined the development of aviation in Mexico. His current monograph project, The Radiance of Tlatelolco: Politics, Culture, and Nuclear Technology in Latin America, 1938–1994, investigates the history of atomic science and nuclear development in Latin America. He was awarded a 2023 Research Fellowship from the Arizona Historical​​.

 

Microsoft Teams Need help?

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Meeting ID: 275 158 233 589

Passcode: 5Kq7BZ2J

 

Dial in by phone

+1 256-715-9946,,450067719# United States, Huntsville

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Phone conference ID: 450 067 719#

 

ALERT: All meeting participants consent to, and will abide by, the terms and conditions viewable at the LEGAL link below. No ITAR/EAR content display or sharing without consent from Export Control.

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Next NASA History Office Speaker Series Presentation on March 26

 

Two space shuttles nose to nose on a tarmac with a large group of people watching from the grass

 

You won’t want to miss the next installment of the NASA History Office Speakers Series on March 26, 2025 at 12 p.m. EDT!* Amy Kaminski, author and champion for public engagement with space, science, and technology, will be presenting on NASA, the Shuttle Era, and Public Engagement After Apollo. She'll talk about how NASA—its leaders, astronauts, engineers, and public affairs and outreach officers—made the decision to try to connect the space shuttle program to broad segments of the American public. In the shadow of Apollo and under NASA's post-Apollo constraints, how did the space shuttle become a celebrated symbol of America's technological ambitions?

 

Microsoft Teams Need help?

Join the meeting now

Meeting ID: 267 200 486 423

Passcode: L5ed2yw6

 

Dial in by phone

+1 256-715-9946,,48483608# United States, Huntsville

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Phone conference ID: 484 836 08#

 

ALERT: All meeting participants consent to, and will abide by, the terms and conditions viewable at the LEGAL link below. No ITAR/EAR content display or sharing without consent from Export Control.

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* The date for this presentation was mistakenly listed as February 26 in a previous message. Be sure to update your calendar.

 

 

Did You Miss Our Winter 2024 Edition of News & Notes?

 

 

We’re likely biased, but the Winter 2024 issue of NASA History News & Notes is a splendid one, packed with examples of how NASA’s past provides insights relevant to its work today. If you haven’t already, be sure to check it out!

 

Did you set a New Years resolution to read more aerospace history? You’ll find previous issues of NASA History News & Notes, books from the NASA History Series, oral histories, and more available online. https://www.nasa.gov/history/history-publications-and-resources/

 

_________________________________

 

NASA History Office

Office of Communications

 

history@mail.nasa.gov

www.nasa.gov/history

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