In the course of our enduring quest for knowledge about ourselves and our universe, we haven't found answers to one of our most fundamental questions: Does life exist anywhere else in the universe? Ten years and billions of dollars in the making, the Mars rover Curiosity is poised to answer this all-important question.Here, Rob Manning, the project's chief engineer, tells of bringing the groundbreaking spacecraft to life. Manning and his team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, tasked with designing a lander many times larger and more complex than any before, faced technical setbacks, fights over inadequate resources, and the challenges of leading an army of brilliant, passionate, and often frustrated experts.Manning's fascinating personal account--which includes information from his exclusive interviews with leading Curiosity scientists--is packed with tales of revolutionary feats of science, technology, and engineering. Listeners experience firsthand the disappointment at encountering persistent technical problems, the agony of near defeat, the sense of victory at finding innovative solutions to these problems, the sheer terror of staking careers and reputations on a lander that couldn't be tested on Earth, and the rush of triumph at its successful touchdown on Mars on August 5, 2012. This is the story of persistence, dedication, and unrelenting curiosity.

Mars Rover Curiosity: An Inside Account from Curiosity's Chief Engineer

Science & Math

Simon, William L.

Manning, Rob

Astronomy & Space Science

Blackstone Audiobooks

The firsthand account of the trials and tribulations of engineering one of the most complex pieces of space technology, the Mars Rover Curiosity, by its chief engineer Rob Manning In the course of our enduring quest for knowledge about ourselves and our universe, we haven't found answers to one of our most fundamental questions: Does life exist anywhere else in the universe? Ten years and billions of dollars in the making, the Mars Rover Curiosity is poised to answer this all-important question. In Mars Rover Curiosity: An Inside Account from Curiosity's Chief Engineer, Rob Manning, the project's chief engineer, tells of bringing the groundbreaking spacecraft to life. Manning and his team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, tasked with designing a lander many times larger and more complex than any before, faced technical setbacks, fights over inadequate resources, and the challenges of leading an army of brilliant, passionate, and often frustrated experts. Manning's fascinating personal account--which includes information from his exclusive interviews with leading Curiosity scientists--is packed with tales of revolutionary feats of science, technology, and engineering. Readers experience firsthand the disappointment at encountering persistent technical problems, the agony of near defeat, the sense of victory at finding innovative solutions to these problems, the sheer terror of staking careers and reputations on a lander that couldn't be tested on Earth, and the rush of triumph at its successful touchdown on Mars on August 5, 2012. This is the story of persistence, dedication, and unrelenting curiosity.

Literature & Fiction

Smithsonian Books

Biographies & Memoirs

Professionals & Academics

Top Tier Leadership: A Thirty Day Leadership Journey

Product Description In Top Tier Leadership, Rob Manning connects Scripture and life experiences to develop a top-tier leadership pathway. He weaves stories of leadership successes-and failures-from the top-tier poles of Carolina tobacco barns to the top tiers of utility boardrooms. From failing Electromagnetic Fields at North Carolina State University to appearing before the Senate Energy Committee as an EMP expert forty years later. Manning connects these stories with Scripture as he demonstrates the value of leading with skills from God's leadership manual, the Holy Bible. Leaders walking with God demonstrate leadership consistency, competency, and vision. People, even those who don't believe, are drawn to godly leaders. Top Tier Leadership is a thirty-day walk through three imperatives: Do the right thing. Know the right thing to do. Find joy in all you do. These three imperatives anchor twenty-seven, biblically based, leadership attributes that define Christian leaders. Rob Manning builds his leadership case with over seventy scriptural references. Use Top Tier Leadership to link your Christian walk with your leadership quest. Discover how to win followers as you consistently adhere to the principles of the Bible amidst the complexities of secular business. Be a faith-based leader in any and every circumstance. Review A Christianity-infused business leadership manual. "People recognize Christians by their actions, their lifestyles, their choices," writes Manning, president of One Heart Global Ministries, in his nonfiction debut. "What greater law than to love one another? What greater policy than respect for all?" At first blush, the precept of loving one another may seem like a recipe for disaster in the cutthroat business world, but Manning assures his readers that "Christians can navigate the complexities of law and policy and also be successful!" He draws on his own career as a leader at Duke Energy, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and other places and breaks down many lessons he's learned. He effectively addresses some challenges that perennially face managers, such as how "tough" or "gentle" to be in dealings with subordinates: "Toughness can be an acquired skill for the naturally gentle, just as gentleness can be an acquired skill for the tough." Throughout, Manning stresses the advantages that Christians can have in the business world over secular or non-Christian counterparts; for example, he maintains that Christians' deep knowledge of Scripture allows them to draw on wisdom that secular people may lack. These sorts of assertions may be mystifying to successful, non-Christian business leaders; indeed, some of the world's wealthiest entrepreneurs lack any religious beliefs at all. That said, over the course of this book, Manning is consistently upbeat in his assertions that compassion is not a weakness, that a moral approach to business can also be a practical one, and that contemplation and personal restraint are a plus in a world where such principles are all too rare. A welcoming, optimistic take on how devout Christians may thrive in the corporate world.Kirkus Indie Reviews About the Author Rob Manning led thousands of men and women at Duke Energy, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and the Electric Power Research Institute. He retired after nearly forty years in the electric power industry, though he still serves as a member of the Board of Trustees for the North American Electric Reliability Corporation. Manning is the President of One Heart Global Ministries, an Ecuadorian-focused mission organization. Rob and his wife, Susan, remain active at Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, where Rob serves as a deacon, teaches Sunday school, and sings in the church choir.

Business & Money

Management & Leadership

WestBow Press

In Top Tier Leadership, Rob Manning connects Scripture and life experiences to develop a top-tier leadership pathway. He weaves stories of leadership successes--and failures--from the top-tier poles of Carolina tobacco barns to the top tiers of utility boardrooms. From failing Electromagnetic Fields at North Carolina State University to appearing before the Senate Energy Committee as an EMP expert forty years later. Manning connects these stories with Scripture as he demonstrates the value of leading with skills from God's leadership manual, the Holy Bible. Leaders walking with God demonstrate leadership consistency, competency, and vision. People, even those who don't believe, are drawn to godly leaders. Top Tier Leadership is a thirty-day walk through three imperatives: Do the right thing. Know the right thing to do. Find joy in all you do. These three imperatives anchor twenty-seven, biblically based, leadership attributes that define Christian leaders. Rob Manning builds his leadership case with over seventy scriptural references. Use Top Tier Leadership to link your Christian walk with your leadership quest. Discover how to win followers as you consistently adhere to the principles of the Bible amidst the complexities of secular business. Be a faith-based leader in any and every circumstance.

Mars. Photographs from the NASA Archives

Arts & Photography

Giovanni, Nikki

Lakdawalla, Emily

Weitekamp, Margaret

Green, James L.

Photography & Video

Taschen

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