STEM, Author

Les Johnson is a physicist, author, CEO of Infinite Frontiers Consulting, and former Chief Technologist at the NASA George C. Marshall Space Flight Center. While at NASA, Les was developing the next generation of space technologies, from advanced space propulsion and power to human life support systems. Les served as the Principal Investigator for spaceflight demonstrations of solar sails, tethers, and more. He is a member of the International Academy of Astronautics, the British Interplanetary Society, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and MENSA – and is the Program Chair of the Interstellar Research Group. His science fiction books include Crisis at Proxima, Pluto, and more. Les’s popular science book, A Traveler’s Guide to the Stars (Princeton Press 2022) is now available in 7 languages. Les is also the co-editor of a 3-volume technical monograph series detailing the complex technical and social problems associated with future interstellar travel (Elsevier).