International Space Station – The Power of Relentless Pursuit

Mark L. Uhran

TUESDAY: August 7, 2012 2:00 P.M. in the H.J.E. Reid Auditorium.

Abstract

The planning, design, ground-based development, and final assembly of the ISS on orbit are an extraordinary achievement. The space station is among the greatest of international cooperative endeavors ever undertaken in the history of science and technology. It now operates as a testament to what can be accomplished by a team of players when they unite together steadfast in pursuit of a singular goal. The ISS also provides to the world at large exemplary evidence of the Power of Relentless Pursuit. Mark Uhran’s remarks will be accompanied by a graphic record of the 35 stages involved in the buildup of the International Space Station over the period from First Element Launch in November 1998 through the Space Shuttle STS-134 mission, followed by a collection of images for the completed space station.

Speaker

Mark L. Uhran retired July 27, 2012 as Director for the International Space Station Division in NASA’s Office of Human Exploration and Operations. He will soon be joining the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to work on strategic communications for the International Thermonuclear Experiment Reactor – a large-scale nuclear fusion reactor under construction in Cadarache, France.

Mr. Uhran has been a leader in evaluating practical applications of orbital space stations since 1984. Since that time, he has traveled worldwide developing strategies for use of the International Space Station.

He received a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University (1976), a Master of Science degree from the University of Maryland (1987), a Master of Public Administration degree from Harvard University (1998), and is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.