About Friends of NASA

Image Credit: NASA’s Earth Observatory

Friends of NASA:
We are an independent non-governmental organization (NGO). 


Our Mission: 
We are dedicated to building international support for peaceful space exploration, commerce, scientific discovery and STEM education.

Friends of NASA Motto: "For the Benefit of All!"

Founded in 2008, Friends of NASA has over 18,000 professional members worldwide and 130,000+ public followers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram combined. Our shared multimedia content has received over 700 million views (Google verified) and counting! Our public education work has been recognized by the United Nations, the American Physical Society (APS), the National Space Society (NSS), the National Aeronautic Association (NAA), the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), the Southwest Research Institute (SWRI), NOIRLab (AURA/NSF), the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, the National Science Teaching Association (NSTA), the National Park Service (NPS), the Government of Singapore, the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC), the Canadian Space Society, the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Google (Alphabet Inc.) and LinkedIn (Microsoft).

Our membership includes NASA, ESA, RKA, CNSA, JAXA, ISRO, CSA, CNES, DLR, DTU Space, ASI, INTA, NSAU, ISA, UAESA, UKSA, ASA, SANSA and NASRDA officials, government representatives, engineers, scientists, aviation/aerospace/space professionals, military personnel, business leaders, academics, graduate students, educators, science writers, and concerned private citizens of influence from over 50 countries around the world. Global leaders in the aerospace/space industries are represented. Former NASA Administrator, Dan Goldin (1992-2001), NASA's longest tenured administrator serving under three U.S. presidents, is a senior Friends of NASA member.

Astronaut members include: E. Michael Fincke (NASA),  Rick Mastracchio (NASA), Rick Hieb (NASA), Ed Gibson (NASA-Skylab), Scott Tingle (NASA), Charles Camarda (NASA), Susan Still Kilrain (NASA), Mike Fossum (NASA), Chris Hadfield (CSA), Robert Thirsk (CSA), Soyeon Yi (Korea’s 1st astronaut), Patrick Baudry (CNES), Claude Nicollier (ESA) and Thomas Pesquet (ESA).

Friends of NASA was founded in 2008 by Executive Director, Dwayne Elliot Lawrence, in honor of the 50th anniversary of NASA’s establishment on July 29th, 1958 by U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower. 

Friends of NASA is headquartered in Montreal, Quebec in Canada close to the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). We work in cooperation with government agencies and non-profit organizations, including the Canadian Space Society (CSS). 

We do not receive funding from NASA or the U.S. government.

International Specialties:
Space, Science & Technology Policy
Space Commerce Policy
Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) Education
Research
Space Advocacy
Human Resources

Founded in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the agency of the United States government responsible for the country's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research.