21 June 2019
Laxenburg, Austria

Astronaut Sandra H. Magnus visits IIASA

Astronaut and Principal of AstroPlanetview LLC, Sandra. H Magnus visited IIASA on Friday 21 June 2019.

© Studio023 | Dreamstime.com

© Studio023 | Dreamstime.com

During the vist Dr. Magnus met with IIASA Director General and CEO, Albert van Jaarsveld to learn more about IIASA and its research collaborations with the US. She also give a lecture entitled "Perspectives from Space"  to IIASA staff and this years participants of the IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program.

Perspectives from Space

Our experiences shape our perspectives, changing how we perceive and think about the world.  Dr. Sandra Magnus, a retired NASA Astronaut, has had the opportunity to live on the International Space Station and view our beautiful planet from a distance.  From space, Earth is clearly humanity’s space ship; one large closed system that encompasses us all.  Her talk will highlight the lessons she learned and observations she made about our world and our place in it.

About Dr. Sandra H. “Sandy” Magnus

Dr. Sandra H. “Sandy” Magnus, currently the Principal of AstroPlanetview, LLC, a consulting firm, is the former Executive Director of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the world’s largest technical society dedicated to the global aerospace profession. Selected to the NASA Astronaut Corps in April, 1996, Dr. Magnus flew in space on the STS-112 shuttle mission in 2002, and on the final shuttle flight, STS-135, in 2011. In addition, she flew to the International Space Station on STS-126 in November 2008, served as flight engineer and science officer on Expedition 18, and returned home on STS-119 after four and a half months on board. Following her assignment on Station, she served at NASA Headquarters in the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. Her last duty at NASA, after STS-135, was as the deputy chief of the Astronaut Office.  Before joining NASA, Dr. Magnus worked for McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Company from 1986 to 1991, as a stealth engineer. While at McDonnell Douglas, she worked on internal research and development and on the Navy’s A-12 Attack Aircraft program, studying the effectiveness of radar signature reduction techniques.

About IIASA and the US

The National Academy of Sciences, one of the founding members of IIASA, is the National Member Organization representing the United States of America. 

Research collaborations between IIASA and the United States of America (US) have been highly productive ever since the institute was founded in 1972. The IIASA–US relationship is central to the Institute and consequently IIASA participates in more activities related to the US than any of its other member countries. 

The US National Member Organization is the National Academy of Sciences, which promotes cooperation with American scientists, research institutions, and government agencies. The membership contribution is supported by the National Science Foundation

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Last edited: 26 June 2019

IIASA ACTIVITIES WITH THE US

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International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
Schlossplatz 1, A-2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Phone: (+43 2236) 807 0 Fax:(+43 2236) 71 313