JEDDAH, 16 January 2005 — A pioneering space scientist who helped man walk on the Moon told Saudi college students they have the right stuff for down-to-earth careers in science and technology.
Professor Farouk El-Baz, now director of the Center for Remote Sensing at Boston University, paid a short visit to Effat College on Monday where he met with students, faculty and staff.
El-Baz is one of the pioneers in a technique that came out of America’s space program, environmental remote sensing. He was in Jeddah to deliver a lecture to the Saudi Geological Survey, and Dr. Haifa Jamal Allail, dean of Effat College, arranged with SGS and El-Baz to visit the college and encourage the female students to pursue education in science and technology.
With his humor and easy, approachable attitude, he gave attention to each person present, though he was the center of attention himself.
El-Baz congratulated Effat College on its recent agreement with Duke University of the United States to become the first college to teach engineering to women in Saudi Arabia. The program starts next semester.
While with NASA, Professor El-Baz trained the Apollo astronauts and guided the effort to select landing sites on the Moon. Later he advanced the ability of scientists to understand the role of humans in fragile desert ecosystems, and pioneered the use of space photography to study the Earth.
Professor El-Baz has won more than 31 awards in space and remote research, written more than 12 books in geology and space research and published more than 500 research papers. He is a board member of several scientific associations as well as the Egyptian Center of Economic Studies and the Egyptian-American Relations Council. The American Geology Association has named an award after El-Baz called “Farouk El-Baz Award for Desert Research.”
The professor also agreed to be the keynote speaker at the college’s upcoming Learning and Technology Symposium March 15-16.
