THIS EVENT IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. SEATING IS LIMITED--PLEASE PLAN TO ARRIVE EARLY. Alan Bean was born in Wheeler, Texas, in 1932. He received his bachelor of science degree at the University of Texas in Austin (on a ROTC Scholarship), and was commissioned Ensign, United States Navy. In 1963 Bean was selected as an astronaut for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. He was the Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 12, man’s second Lunar landing. Alan Bean became the fourth man to set foot on the moon. In 1973 he again flew in space as commander of Skylab Mission II. After Skylab, Bean was selected as backup spacecraft commander for the joint American-Russian Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975. He then served as Chief of Operations and Training and Acting Chief Astronauts until the first flight of the space shuttle. Throughout his career as an astronaut, Bean took courses at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, Glassell School of Art and from a number of talented artists in the Houston area. Spurred on by his fellow astronauts, he realized that he was one of only twelve humans who had walked on the moon, who was able to celebrate the Apollo adventure in fine art. In 1981, Alan Bean resigned as a NASA astronaut to devote himself to painting. For the last 32 years, Bean has been a full-time professional artist. He has had a number of exhibitions during his long career, the most recent at The Butler Museum of American Art, in Youngstown, Ohio. RECEPTION AT 6:30 PM Parking: • The closest visitor parking (paid) is near Entrance 2. • $1 parking is available in the lot west of the Stadium (entrance on Greenbriar St.), but plan for a long walk or ride on the shuttle. ALL PARKING MUST BE PAID BY CREDIT CARD. Campus Map: http://www.rice.edu/maps/maps.html For more details about other lectures in the series and to be added to the mailing list, check out our website: http://spacefrontiers.rice.edu/