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  • “Exploration is in our nature.” - Carl Sagan

The Thomas O. Paine Memorial Award

Named in honor of Tom Paine, a member of The Planetary Society's Board of Directors for many years and NASA Administrator at the time of the Apollo 11 moon landing, the award recognizes the group or individual who has done the most to advance the long-range human exploration of Mars.

Past recipients of the Paine Award include Michael C. Malin, the U.S. and Soviet members of the Apollo-Soyuz Crew; Daniel Goldin, then Administrator of NASA; Chris McKay, a planetary scientist at NASA Research Center and now Planetary Society Board Member; members of the Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor teams; science fiction author Ray Bradbury; and, posthumously, Planetary Society co-founder Carl Sagan.

Bruce Murray presents the Tom Paine award to Ray Bradbury at The Planetary Society's 25th Anniversary Awards Dinner
Bruce Murray presents the Tom Paine award to Ray Bradbury at The Planetary Society's 25th Anniversary Awards Dinner Bruce Murray awards to Ray Bradbury the Mars flag as part of the Thomas O. Paine award for the Advancement of Human Exploration of Mars at The Planetary Society's 25th Anniversary Awards Dinner, November 12, 2005.Image: Photography Alberto Rodriguez (Alan Berliner Photographers Hollywood) courtesy The Planetary Society
Neil deGrasse Tyson receives Cosmos Award from Nichelle Nichols

Awards

The Planetary Society is proud to honor those in our community who help to promote the future of space exploration through two very special awards, The Cosmos Award for Outstanding Public Presentation of Science and The Thomas O. Paine Memorial Award for the Advancement of Human Exploration of Mars.