HOUSTON, Texas — Members of the Texas A&M Board of Regents approved on Wednesday the creation of the Texas A&M Space Institute and the construction of a $200 million faculty in Houston.
“Now it's time, and now we're pressing beyond the Earth's orbit. Now we're going back to the moon, we're going on to Mars, there's no doubt in my mind," Space Institute Director Nancy Currie-Gregg said. "Those missions are in place the vehicles are in place and people are trained to do that. So there's no more exciting time than now.”
According to former astronaut Currie-Gregg, the future is bright for both TAMU and NASA. The Lone Star State is set to remain a leader in space exploration and is poised to become a space industry leader.
“Space is going to connect into almost every major economic sector." Associate Director Rob Ambrose said. "If you want to be a part of the future of your economic sector, you need to embrace how to exploit space and use it for your business.”
The faculty is set to be built adjacent to the Johnson Space Center in Southeast Houston, where scientists and other personnel will aid in mission training, advanced robotics, aeronautics research, and both Lunar and Martian exploration.
“If we want to get expertise from mission operators, mission designers, engineers, astronauts, it's very easy for them to just hop over," Currie-Gregg said. "Literally a couple of blocks and come work with our students and work with our faculty.”
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