NASA and the American South

Brian C. Odom · Stephen P. Waring

Jun 2024 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Kent Klineman

About this audiobook

During the Cold War, federal funding for the space program transformed the southern United States as NASA built most of its major new facilities in the region and invested heavily in Project Apollo. This volume examines the economic, social, political, and cultural impacts of NASA on the South since the space program was founded in 1958 and explores how the program's strong relationship to the region has affected NASA's organizational culture, technological development, and programmatic goals. Featuring contributions by scholars from a range of backgrounds, including space historians and specialists in other fields, NASA and the American South offers perspectives on how NASA provided a springboard for the complete restructuring of communities that were home to its facilities in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. These changes unsettled previous patterns of life, and the chapters in this volume include assessments of NASA's influence on regional development, tourism, art and architecture, religion, and Black institutions of higher education. Bridging the gap between the history of technology and its geographical and cultural contexts, this book offers an unprecedented reevaluation of the impact of the space program on its surrounding landscape, introducing a new framework for interpreting the agency's legacy.

About the author

Kent Klineman is a voice actor and narrator based in Los Angeles. A Tony Award winner, Kent has acted in regional theater and on Broadway. He recently guest starred for the second time on FX's hit show Better Things.

Brian C. Odom is chief historian at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). He is coeditor with Stephen P. Waring of the award-winning NASA and the Long Civil Rights Movement.

Stephen P. Waring is professor of history at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. He is coeditor with Brian C. Odom of the award-winning NASA and the Long Civil Rights Movement.