Les Johnson, NASA employee, to hold lecture at Ashland Community and Technical College

Could outer space hold the answers to making a greener Earth? That’s one of the questions that Les Johnson, an author and technologist at NASA, will discuss when he visits Ashland Community and Technical College on November 4.

The talk, called “Harvesting Space for a Greener Earth,” will cover topics like how space technology and resources can be used to ease the strains on Earth’s environments, and worries over energy availability. 

The public as well as students are invited to attend the talk, which will be held in the Teleconference Room of the Learning Resource Center.

Les Johnson is a native of Ashland, having graduated from Paul G. Blazer High School.

Johnson then went on to earn a bachelor’s degree at Transylvania University and then to Vanderbilt University for his masters.

He has also written a few science fiction novels as well as several non-fiction books covering popular science topics like space exploration and space in general, such as his new book, “A Traveler’s Guide to the Stars,” out through Princeton University Press.

Currently a NASA employee at the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, Johnson works as a principal investigator of America’s first solar sail space mission called NEA, or Near-Earth Asteroid Scout.

The NEA Scout will utilize a large (925 square feet) solar sail to power a small space ship to meet up with an asteroid.

Johnson has also worked as the manager for the Space Science Programs and Projects Office at NASA, as well as the Interstellar Propulsion Research Project, and the In-Space Propulsion Technology Project.

Another project he is involved with is the Interstellar Research Group, of which he is a founding member. He is also a member of the International Academy of Astronautics, a member of the National Space Society, a Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society, and is a member of MENSA, the oldest High-IQ society in the world.

In addition to his lecture at Ashland Community and Technical College, Johnson will also give a talk at the Highlands Museum at 11 a.m on November 5 about how interstellar travel might one day be possible. There will also be two book signings, one at Broadway Books, and the other later in the day at Conquest Books.

More information about Les Johnson can be found at his website.

More information about Ashland Community and Technical College can be found at the school’s website.