?»?Miguel J. Cooper M. (Miguel Jorge Cooper Mendez, Michael George Cooper; British/Mexican) Although I have never been part of the Space Program directly, through the years have supported it encouraging and congratulating Astronauts, Launch Control and Mission Control personnel for every Mission that took Place since the Approach and Landing Tests of the Space Shuttle, I contributed with ideas and other items for the benefit of the Space program, also has supported the unmanned space missions. On August 2010 presented a Mars Manned Mission Conceptual Design paper on the Mars Society Conference. When possible I have given talks about the Space Program in the community where I live.

In 1969 I was 13 years old, and I remember watching on TV the landing of the Lunar Module and at night The Apollo 11 Astronauts walking in the Moon. For me this was the beginning of a new era that changed totally the way to see our planet, and the way to reach goals, as Dr, Von Braun said ?€?we have the means; we need the will to do it?€?. Just 8 years were needed to reach this goal that implied, technology, investigation, coordination and hard work, the goal was reached, and with it we all change. Since then I have been following the Space Program, amazing discoveries and things have been done since then, The following Moon Landings, the Skylab, the Apollo-Soyuz , the amazing Space Shuttle and the impressive ISS. This is now the depart platform to reach other goals, the return to the Moon with the vision to stay there for longer times, a Mars Manned Mission and many more. The goals are there, the knowledge, technology, and the will to do it, now with cooperation of other space agencies these ambitious goals can be achieved in relatively short time. Apollo 8 opened the way to the Moon, Apollo 11 opened the possibility to go to other world and explore, Apollo-Soyuz opened the international cooperation, the Shuttle program opened the way for a very efficient way to reach orbit, the ISS opened the way for long duration space missions and automatic docking vehicles. Everything is ready for the next goals.

I believe that the Space program is the future of the human civilization and the engine for the progress of human kind in every field of knowledge.

I have counted always with the support of my wife Aracely; my daughters Lesley and Stephanie and my little dog Molly.