On December 19, Prof. Dr. Gertruda Uścińska, Rector of the Nicolaus Copernicus Superior School, met with Artur B. Chmielewski, one of the best-known Poles working for NASA. The conversation concerned the cooperation of Polish NASA scientists with SGMK.
Artur B. Chmielewski gained international recognition participating in numerous space missions. He was responsible for the first ever entry of a space probe into orbit around the nucleus of a comet and the deposition of a lander on it. While working at NASA, he built scientific instruments for Mars rovers and nuclear generators for interplanetary missions, tested spacecraft parts and worked on 15 NASA missions that explored the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and asteroids.
The meeting discussed Polish-American scientific cooperation in the fields of astronomy, cosmology, as well as legal and organizational aspects of space missions. Artur Chmielewski pointed out the huge potential of the Polish scientists’ participation in NASA missions. The SGMK Rector underlined the importance of the scientific achievements of Nicolaus Copernicus. Professor Chmielewski expressed his readiness to engage in teaching activities at SGMK.
At the end of the conversation about the achievements and phenomenon of Nicolaus Copernicus, Professor Chmielewski was presented with a facsimile copy of Nicolaus Copernicus’ work “De revolutionibus orbium celestium”( “On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres”) – one of eleven original copies found in Poland, stored in the Library of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. (Reference Pol.6.III.142).
Artur B. Chmielewski works at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California as a space mission manager. He studied at the University of Michigan and the University of Southern California, graduating in mechanics and computer science.
At JPL, he managed numerous projects, such as the Space Technology 8 mission, Mars Telecommunication Orbiter Rendezvous Experiment, Space Technology 6 mission, Gossamer Program, Inflatable Antenna Flight Experiment, and Cryocooler Flight Experiment. However, he became most famous for managing the US side of the Rosetta project – the European Space Agency’s space probe tasked with entering orbit around the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyov-Gersimenko and depositing a lander on its surface.
He is the son of cartoonist Henryk Chmielewski (“Papcio Chmiel”), author of the popular comic book series “Tytus, Romek and A’Tomek”.
