COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Apr. 1, 2005) With anticipated record attendance, an expanded exhibit center and top officials from government, academia and industry, the 21st National Space Symposium is set to begin April 4 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

Space Foundation officials expect more than 6,500 total participants at the event, which runs through April 7. Widely regarded as the premier gathering of the space industry, the symposium features a wide array of speakers and panels addressing critical policy and programming issues confronting the civil, commercial and national security space sectors.

More than 1,000 companies, organizations and institutions are represented, coming from all 50 states and 12 foreign countries. Education-related events, including a Space Career Fair, are alone expected to attract more than 1,000 teachers and students. Foundation officials said the attendance marks a 10% growth from 2004.

Leading the slate of speakers are The Honorable Ken Calvert, head of the Space and Aeronautics subcommittee in the U.S. House of representatives; The Honorable Dr. Ronald Sega, director, Defense Research and Engineering; Gen Lance Lord, USAF, commander of Air Force Space Command; ADM Timothy Keating, USN, commander, NORAD and U.S. Northern Command; Gen Paul Hester, USAF, commander Pacific Air Forces and Col Fred Gregory, USAF (Retired), acting NASA administrator.

More than 120 companies are presenting more than 35,000 square feet of exhibits in the Ball Aerospace Exhibit Center – the largest exhibition in symposium history.

Singer-songwriter Michael Martin Murphey headlines the Opening Ceremony, co-sponsored by The Boeing Company. Awards honoring space achievement, education, and public awareness will be presented.

The Foundation’s highest award, the General James E. Hill Lifetime Space Achievement Award, will be presented to The Honorable Edward C. “Pete” Aldridge, former Under Secretary of Defense, for his decades of public and industry service. The Hill Award luncheon, which takes place Wednesday, is co-sponsored by the Colorado Space Coalition and features Colorado Governor Bill Owens as the distinguished host.

New for this year’s symposium will be a pair of live national television broadcasts. Broadcasting of “Return to Flight-All Systems Go” and “The Vision for Space Exploration-Getting There from Here” is being made possible by NASA Public Affairs, and will allow anyone with access to NASA Television an unprecedented look at the proceedings of the symposium. The live broadcasts originate Tuesday and Wednesday from 11:00 am – 12:00 noon MST. Consult your local satellite or cable provider for more information on NASA Television.

The Thursday capstone event of the symposium will be the Space Technology Hall of Fame Dinner, co-sponsored by Northrop Grumman. The result of successful NASA and private industry research and development efforts, four new space-based technologies will be inducted into the Hall of Fame: InnerVue Diagnostic Scope System, NanoCeram Superfilters, Outlast Technologies, Inc. Smart Fabric Technology, and Portable Hyperspectral Imaging Systems.

Other sponsor highlights include the opening night reception, co-sponsored by ITT Industries; opening night dessert reception and fireworks, co-sponsored by General Dynamics; media center, co-sponsored by Lockheed Martin; corporate partnership dinner, co-sponsored by Raytheon Company; corporate partnership reception, co-sponsored by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce; and Space Technology Hall of Fame reception, co-sponsored by the Coalition for Space Exploration.

Additional co-sponsors: Air Launch, Analytical Graphics, Inc., ATK Thiokol, BAE Systems, Cisco Systems, Booz Allen Hamilton, Cisco Systems, Colorado Institute of Technology, Computer Sciences Corp., CSP Associates, EcoQuest International, Florida Space Authority, GlobalSpec, Harris Corporation, Hewlett Packard, Honeywell Aerospace, IEEE, Infinite Links, Inmarsat, Perot Systems, SPACE.com, Space News, Space Systems/Loral, SpaceVest, Stellar Solutions, Swales Aerospace, and T/Space.

About the Space Foundation

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo., the Space Foundation is a national nonprofit organization that vigorously advances civil, commercial, and national security space endeavors and educational excellence. The Space Foundation has offices in Washington, D.C., and Cape Canaveral, Fla. In addition to the National Space Symposium, the Space Foundation annually conducts, along with its partnering organizations, Space at the Crossroads, set for May 18, 2005, in Washington, D.C., and Strategic Space 2005, scheduled Oct. 4-6, 2005, in Omaha, Neb. For more information about the Space Foundation, visit www.spacefoundation.org.