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By Cindy George
How Rice
Tethered
Houston
to Space
R
ice University's storied and ongoing collaboration with NASA helped
Houston become the hub of space exploration, home to research and tech-
nology that continue to bolster the nation's other-worldly pursuits.
The most celebrated connection came nearly six decades ago with a historic
speech in Rice Stadium. President John F. Kennedy's "We choose to go to the
moon" address on Sept. 12, 1962, helped launch the nation's eventual landing on
the lunar surface and propelled Houston into space history.
But even before that speech, two esteemed Rice alumni were brokering deals
that would allow Houston to house a major federal research facility.
➟
Credit:
Courtesy
of
Woodson
Research
Center,
Fondren
Library,
Rice
University
