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THE United Nations was set today to appoint an obscure Malaysian astrophysicist to act as Earths first contact for any aliens that may come visiting.
Mazlan Othman, the head of the UN's little-known Office for Outer Space Affairs (Unoosa), is to describe her potential new role next week at a scientific conference at the Royal Society’s Kavli conference centre in Buckinghamshire.
Wikipedia's Article on Dr Mazlan Othman
Early life and education
Born in Seremban, Malaysia, Othman attended Tunku Kurshiah College, a boarding school in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan. Her aptitude for mathematics led to enrollment in a science curriculum, and though her family encouraged her to become a physician, she decided to pursue physics instead. She attended University of Otago in New Zealand on a Colombo plan scholarship, earning a BSc. (honors) in 1975. She joined the National University of Malaysia (UKM) as a tutor, but negotiated an extension to her scholarship and returned to Otago, earning her Ph.D. in physics in 1981 - the first woman to do so in the physics department's 110-year existence.
Career
Othman returned to Malaysia as the country's first astrophysicist, and worked to create a curriculum in astrophysics at the national university, as well as to build public awareness and understanding of astronomy and space issues. She also performed research for a semester at the Kiso Observatory in Japan[2].
Her interest in public education was rewarded in 1990 when Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad, a strong supporter of education and science, placed her in charge of the Planetarium Division of the Prime Minister's Department, overseeing development of Planetarium Negara, Malaysia's national planetarium in Kuala Lumpur[3] After the planetarium opened in 1993, Othman was made Director General of the government's new Space Science Studies Division, where she launched a microsatellite development program. She received a full professorship the following year.
In November 1999, Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations, appointed Othman as Director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) in Vienna[4]. At the request of Prime Minister Mahathir, she returned to Malaysia in July 2002 to serve for five years as the founding Director General of Angkasa, the Malaysian National Space Agency, where her work led to the launch of the first Malaysian astronaut, Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor.
Othman was reappointed as UNOOSA director in 2007 by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and left Angkasa to return to the post that December[5]. At UNOOSA she deals with issues of international cooperation in space, prevention of collisions and space debris, use of space-based remote sensing platforms for sustainable development, coordination of space law between countries, and the risks posed by near-earth asteroids, among other topics.
Honors
In the 1997 Agong's honours list, Tuanku Ja'afar, tenth Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, conferred the federal decoration and order Panglima Jasa Negara (for meritorious service) on Othman, granting her the honorific "Datuk."[6]
Also in 1997, Othman's alma mater, the University of Otago, awarded her the degree of Honorary Doctor of Science.[7]
In 2009, for "her work in developing astronomy education in Malaysia and her leading national and international role in space science," the Institute of Physics awarded Othman its President's Medal
Wikipedia's Article on Dr Mazlan Othman
Interview with Dr. Mazlan Othman & International Astronautical Federation
QUESTION:
You have recently returned to UN-OOSA. What are your plans for the future?
ANSWER:
I was director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs between 1999 and 2002 and then went back to my country to help start its Space Agency. This is an ongoing project but this year I have watched our first angkasawan - astronaut - go up into space onboard a Russian Soyuz, take part in activities at the International Space Station and then return safely to Earth.
It has been a challenging and rewarding five years and I have decided to return to the international level. The future is an open book - maybe in the longer term I would like to go back into the educational sphere - developing intellectual capital in the upcoming generation.
Returning to the story of my posting back to UN-OOSA, I am as keen as ever to promote international cooperation which is a key to the future of space.
Alongside developing the Malaysian space programme, in the last five years we have been setting up an inter-Space Agency coordinating committee. The committee works across international boundaries. The idea has caught on and is working very well - we have nine working groups now.
Space is important. Co-ordination in space is very important!
Interview with Dr. Mazlan Othman & International Astronautical Federation
At UNOOSA she deals with issues of international cooperation in space, prevention of collisions and space debris, use of space-based remote sensing platforms for sustainable development, coordination of space law between countries, and the risks posed by near-earth asteroids, among other topics.
Brian Weeden, a former Air Force officer who worked on space operations, said the new satellite makes it feasible to observe and collect information on objects at much higher altitudes in deep space. The satellite "may very well have imagery capabilities" beyond what has been made public, said Weeden, who now is an analyst for the Secure World Foundation.
"Think Hubble," said Weeden, a reference to the space telescope which provided more detailed images of the universe at greater distances.
Originally posted by smokingman2006
those who laughed long and hard at my last thread should think long and hard about this story.
any awaken person must see that the ball is truly rolling along now.