NASA Day

WHEREAS, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center has, in the 55 years since its creation in 1960, contributed numerous advancements rocket propulsion technology that have landed a man on the moon and are currently developing advanced, affordable space systems and technologies that enable astronauts to live and work safely in the harsh space environment; and

WHEREAS, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is responsible for about 16,000 jobs and contributing more than $62 million in state and local tax revenues annually while serving as a major economic development asset and technology magnet for the state of Alabama and the southeast drawing numerous private-sector technology companies to the area, creating thousands of high-paying jobs and attracting the talented people needed to fill them; and

WHEREAS, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is leading development of NASA’s Space Launch System, or SLS, an entirely new capability for taking humans and science missions beyond Earth’s orbit onward to the journey to Mars. Marshall and the SLS program support tens of thousands of jobs, creating a significant economic impact to the full spectrum of industries from manufacturing to food service; and

WHEREAS, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is building on a long legacy of successful, mutually beneficial partnerships to lead NASA and the nation into a rewarding future in space while Marshall’s valuable innovations in technology are made accessible to the public for scientific, academic, industrial and commercial use; and

WHEREAS, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is, in a continuation of its work on the Hubble Space Telescope and the Chandra X-ray Observatory, developing robust science missions to expand understanding of our planet, the solar system and the universe; and

WHEREAS, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is working in support of the National Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics initiative to educate and inspire a new generation of scientists, engineers and explorers to carry on NASA’s mission of discovery throughout our solar system and deliver untold benefits back home on Earth; and

WHEREAS, the citizens of the state of Alabama are indeed exceedingly proud of the Marshall Space Flight Center’s distinguished achievement, and the advances in space exploration and scientific progression it has produced, and its unparalleled contributions to the benefit of all mankind:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert Bentley, Governor of Alabama, do hereby proclaim April 9, 2015, as

NASA Day

in the state of Alabama, and recognize the accomplishments of NASA and the Marshall Space Flight Center and the remarkable technical and scientific contributions it has made across our state and across the nation.