Evening with the Stars: Delving Deep into the Future of Space and Aviation

On a picture-perfect summer evening, The Ohio Aerospace Institute team worked for several months to prepare to welcome over 250 distinguished guests to Windows on the River in Cleveland for NASA’s An Evening with the Stars. This is the ninth event OAI has hosted on behalf of NASA.  Guests were received with a warm greeting and then transitioned into a captivating walk through the Cleveland Aquarium.

The ambiance was captivating in the elegant venue as attendees mingled among industry leaders and visionaries. The reception was further elevated by an outdoor patio where Guests enjoyed impeccable weather, complete with an arresting view of the skyline.

The presentation portion of the evening kicked off with a welcome from Dr. John Sankovic, President of OAI, expressing gratitude towards the many sponsors, including JobsOhio, ASRC Federal, and Blue Abyss, for their generous support. NASA GRC Center Director, Dr. Jimmy Kenyon, then took to the stage to speak about NASA Glenn’s pivotal role in the future of the US space program, space exploration, and the promising domains of sustainable and hypersonic aviation. He then introduced the first speaker of the evening.

Carlos Flores’s segment provided an in-depth look at the importance of NASA Glenn’s facilities and infrastructure. From the beginnings of his career as an engineer in the military to his current role, he revealed the ambitious plans laid out for the next century.

In a turn that sparked curiosity, Dr. Rickey Shyne posed the compelling question, “What if?” challenging attendees to imagine the potential future technologies that could revolutionize life as we know it.

The personal narratives of Dr. Jamesa Stokes, Gretchen Morales-Valle, and Darcy DeAngelis resonated with many. Sharing their individual journeys to NASA, they also shed light on their passion-driven efforts to spearhead the next generation space program and groundbreaking scientific discoveries.

A special appearance by Astro, the agile mobile robot from Boston Dynamics used by NASA Glenn for safe infrastructure monitoring, delighted guests as it walked the red carpet and posed for pictures.

This concluding an evening that was as enlightening as it was entertaining. As if to punctuate the evening, attendees then left under a night sky full of stars.