About Rod D. Martin
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September 14, 2017
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has transmitted thousands of images back to Earth while chronicling its voyage through the solar system and into Saturn’s orbit. But its 20-year mission is nearing its end. The spacecraft will plunge into the ringed planet’s atmosphere Sept. 15, sending data for as long as it can until it disintegrates.
To some, space science may not seem to have obvious relevance. When it comes to breakthrough discoveries that alter the course of events on Earth, however, the end goal of a space mission is only the tip of the iceberg. Space science regularly spurs valuable advancements that help humans live long and prosper at home, and it is responsible for such innovations as improved computer software and new imaging technologies. Furthermore, strength in areas related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics remains a key indicator of a country’s future competitiveness. Projects like the Cassini mission are a valuable opportunity to captivate the minds of younger generations, leading them to mathematics, the sciences, and beyond.
NASA technician Dan Maynard places a CD into a compartment on the Cassini spacecraft at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Aug. 15, 1997.
(BRUCE WEAVER/AFP/Getty Images)
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In a beam of light, the Titan IV-B launch vehicle carries the Cassini spacecraft and attached Huygens Titan probe through early morning clouds and into space at Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Oct. 15, 1997, kicking off the probe’s seven-year journey to Saturn.
(BRUCE WEAVER/AFP/Getty Images)
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Cassini made its closest approach to Saturn’s pockmarked moon, Mimas — nicknamed the “Death Star” — on Jan. 30, 2017.
(NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Getty Images)
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Cassini captured this shot of Saturn’s rings — bands of icy particles spread over a vast area — with its wide-angle camera July 21, 2016. Mimas is visible on the bottom left.
(NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Getty Images)
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Saturn’s moons Dione (L) and Epimetheus (R) appear above the sunlit side of the planet’s rings. Cassini captured this image April 2, 2016.
(NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Getty Images)
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Cassini’s narrow-angle camera was too close to Saturn to fit the entire planet in this shot from May 16, 2004.
(NASA/Getty Images)
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Cassini captured this image of Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, in ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths. On Jan. 14, 2004, the Huygens probe landed on Titan, setting the record for the greatest distance from Earth that a spacecraft has landed.
(NASA/Getty Images)
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In this picture from Nov. 23, 2004, Saturn’s icy moon, Tethys, is visible below the planet’s south pole, which is marked by swirling storms made up of clouds and ribbons of gas.
(HO/AFP/Getty Images)
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Cassini captured this high-resolution glimpse of the dark side of Saturn’s moon Iapetus — and, for the first time, the bright side as well — on Sept. 10, 2017. The dark region on Iapetus is called its leading hemisphere, while the bright region is called its trailing hemisphere.
(NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute/Wikimedia Commons)
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From several high-resolution images, Cassini produced the most detailed global color portrait of Jupiter ever assembled on Dec. 9, 2000.
(NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute/Wikimedia Commons)
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— Cassini Crosses the Final Frontier: A Visual Anthology originally appeared at Stratfor.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
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