To commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the first successful planetary mission, Mariner 2 sent to Venus, the NASA History Program Office, the Division of Space History at the National Air and Space Museum, the NASA Science Mission Directorate, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory are hosting this two-day symposium on the history of planetary exploration. Through the generous support of Lockheed Martin, the symposium is being held at the Lockheed Martin Global Vision Center in the Crystal City complex in Arlington, VA.




Entitled "Solar System Exploration @ 50," the purpose of this symposium is to consider, over the more than fifty year history of the space age, what we have learned about the other bodies of the solar system and the process whereby we have learned it. This symposium seeks to pursue broader questions relating to the history of planetary exploration. Panelists speaking at the symposium include participants who were "there at the creation," current scientists and researchers, historians and analysts from around the world. A select collection of the papers presented at the symposium will be published as a book. less