<center><font size="3">The Value Proposition for Space</font>

<font size="2">Security, Discovery, Prosperity</font></center>

Nearly a half-century into the space age, space remains a new frontier whose value to humanity is still being discovered. We continue to discover how critical space capabilities are to global security, economic growth, and scientific discovery. Space enhances the preservation of peace by continuous global awareness and communications. It improves the quality of human existence by better monitoring Earth to provide warnings of short-term weather and long-term environmental threats and to support disaster relief. It increases economic activity and productivity through more efficient global communications, geopositioning, global timing, and terrestrial resource tracking and utilization. Finally, itencourages the study of science and mathematics by today's youth by furthering discovery both on the Earth and throughout the amazingly complex and still mysterious universe.

Despite these remarkable advances in space technologies and applications over the past half-century, they remain largely unrecognized by the majority of people outside the space community. During these times of stressed national and community budgets, and of increased global political tensions, it is difficult for those not directly engaged in space endeavors to recognize their value compared to their costs.

Increasing awareness of both the achievement of space activities to this point, as well as the promise they hold for a more secure, comfortable life on a global scale, is one of the main objectives of this conference.

The AIAA Space 2006 conference theme seeks to convey the importance of space for civil, commercial, security, and scientific purposes, and to identify the investments in security, logistics infrastructure, horizontal integration and scientific investigation that will maximize space's value to ensuring prosperity for humanity in the future. The conference will address a wide array of topics, including technical, economic, and policy themes, to provide a forum to discuss "the value proposition for space."

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<font size="2">Space 2006 is Co-Chaired by:</font>
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