The Moon captivates our collective imagina tion\, serving as a calendar\, a mythic deity\, an artistic muse\, and a s cientific frontier. Join us for a fascinating virtual conversation with Sm ithsonian National Air and Space Museum curator Matthew Shindell as we del ve into his book\, Lunar: A History of the Moon in Myths\, Maps\, and Matter.
\nPresident John F. Kennedy&rsquo\;s rousing &ldquo\;We will go to the Moon&rdquo\; speech in 1961 before the U S Congress catalyzed the celebrated Apollo program\, spurring the US Geolo gical Survey&rsquo\;s scientists to map the Moon. Over the next eleven yea rs a team of twenty-two\, including a dozen illustrator-cartographers\, cr eated forty-four charts that helped set the course of space exploration.\n
For the first time\, each of those beautifully hand-drawn\, colorfu l charts is presented together in one stunning book. In Lunar\, National A ir and Space Museum curator Matthew Shindell&rsquo\;s expert commentary ac companies each chart\, along with the key geological characteristics and i nterpretations that were set out in the original Geologic Atlas of the Moo n. \;
\nInterwoven throughout the book are contributions from sc holars devoted to studying the multifaceted significance of the Moon to hu mankind around the world. Traveling from the Stone Age to the present day\ , they explore a wide range of topics: the prehistoric lunar calendar\; th e role of the Moon in creation myths of Ancient Egypt\, Greece\, and Rome\ ; the role of the Moon in astrology\; the importance of the Moon in establ ishing an Earth-centered solar system\; the association of the Moon with m adness and the menstrual cycle\; how the Moon governs the tides\; and the use of the Moon in surrealist art.
\nRegister today for a thorough e xploration of the Moon&rsquo\;s role in popular culture\, science\, and my th!
\n\nAbout the Author
\nMatthew Shi ndell is a historian of science and technology whose work focuses on the e xploration of the Earth\, Moon\, and planets and the research programs tha t made this exploration possible. He is a Space History Curator at the Smi thsonian&rsquo\;s National Air and Space Museum\, and the co-host of the M useum's podcast\, AirSpace. \;
\nShindell holds a Ph.D. from the University of California\, San Diego's History Department and Science Stu dies Program. He also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Iowa's Writers' Workshop. He is the author of \;For the Love of Ma rs: A Human History of the Red Planet  (2023) and The Life and Science of Harold C. Urey (2019)\, coauthor of Spaceships (2023)\,  Our Future in Space (2023)\, and Discerning Expertsâ €¯(2019)\, editor of \;LUNAR: A History of the Moon in Myths\, Maps \, and Matter\, and co-editor of Smithsonian American Women  ( 2019). 
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\nDisclaimer \;\n
The views expressed by presenters are their own and their appearanc e in a program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they re present. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute a n endorsement or recommendation by Indianapolis Public Library.
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