An Apollo Awakening
Burt Dicht’s story begins with the Moon. As a child growing up in Philadelphia, he was oblivious to the space race until one Christmas Eve in 1968. That night, Apollo 8 slipped into orbit around the Moon. Young Dicht wandered into the living room to find his older brother transfixed by the television. “I had no clue,” Dicht recalls of that pivotal evening. “I said, what’s going on? And he said, the spacecraft Apollo 8 is in orbit around the Moon.” In that instant, the cosmos opened up. If people could circle the Moon, what else was possible? Curiosity took hold. Dicht devoured space news and stayed up for every mission.
By the following summer, Apollo 11’s astronauts were about to take humanity’s first steps on the lunar surface. The ten-year-old Dicht stepped outside and gazed at the Moon shining above. He marveled, “There are people on the Moon.” That realization “touched me right then and there,” he says. It planted in him an unshakeable desire to be part of humanity’s grand adventure beyond Earth.
Project Spark and the First Space Missions at Home
In 1974, as a freshman at Northeast High School, Dicht found a way to turn his newfound passion into practice. He enrolled in an ambitious after-school science program called Project SPARC—short for Space Research Capsule. The program began in the early 1960s at the dawn of the Space Age. The students in “Spark,” as it was known, didn’t just read about NASA missions; they conducted their own. Under the guidance of a visionary physics teacher, teenagers assumed roles as engineers, medics, and even astronauts. They designed and built a life-sized spacecraft simulator in the school, complete with control panels and repurposed Mercury-era spacesuits.
Inside this homemade capsule, Dicht and his classmates ran dramatic 24-hour “missions.” They worked in shifts to monitor their student astronauts’ vital signs and solve in-flight problems. “How do you do that when you’re in high school?” Dicht still marvels to this day. He recalls the intensity and camaraderie of those days. The program’s hands-on rigor solidified his career path. He joined Spark’s medical team as a younger student, imagining how to keep astronauts safe. Then, as a senior, he donned the helmet himself to serve on the crew. Spending twenty-four hours sealed in a mock spacecraft with peers taught him the challenges and thrills of exploration. By the time he emerged, Dicht’s course was set. “I think that solidified my thinking,” he says. “Ultimately, it led to me becoming a mechanical engineer and going into the aerospace industry.”
Designing the Future, from Fighter Jets to IEEE
The dream kindled by Apollo and nurtured in that high school capsule propelled Dicht into the world of aerospace engineering. He earned a mechanical engineering degree from Temple University. In 1982, he set out west to California, where the aerospace industry was shaping the next generation of aircraft. At Northrop Grumman, Dicht quickly found himself on teams designing cutting-edge military jets. He contributed to the nimble F-5 Tiger II and its more advanced cousin, the F-20 Tigershark. He helped refine designs for the Navy’s new F/A-18 Hornet. He also dove into the black-project realm of the YF-23—a next-generation stealth fighter prototype.
It was exhilarating work for a young engineer fresh out of school. Dicht was turning lofty concepts into wind-tunnel models and blueprints for aircraft that might dominate future skies. Yet even as he made his mark on high-performance planes, Dicht’s gaze remained skyward. Outside office hours, he cultivated his passion for space history and public outreach. He pursued a master’s degree in history and wrote articles chronicling aerospace milestones. He also volunteered as an exhibit explainer at New York’s Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. He even served as an aerospace education officer in the Civil Air Patrol. In that role, he mentored cadets in the science and lore of flight. These parallel pursuits reflected two halves of Dicht’s character: the engineer and the evangelist.
After two decades in industry, he transitioned to a role that combined his technical insight with his talent for mentorship. Joining the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Dicht became Director of University Programs. In that position, he developed educational initiatives for engineering students and faculty worldwide. It was a natural fit. He had lived the excitement of discovery and understood the value of nurturing it in the next generation. Now he could institutionalize that effort, helping young engineers find their footing just as he once had. By the time he retired from IEEE, Dicht’s career had spanned from designing hardware to creating educational programs. It was a rare orbit that gave him both practical and cultural perspectives on technology.
A Citizen’s Voice for Space
Through all those years, one constant thread in Dicht’s life was the National Space Society (NSS). He built jets in California in the 1980s, and guided students in the 2000s. Through it all, Dicht remained at heart a space advocate. He had first joined the Society’s predecessor as a teenager in the 1970s. “I actually got involved in NSS when it was formed as the National Space Institute,” he recalls. In 1974, Wernher von Braun—architect of the Apollo moon rocket—founded the National Space Institute to promote space exploration. A few years later, Princeton physicist Gerard O’Neill launched another group, the L5 Society, to advocate for space colonies. In 1987, the two organizations merged to form the National Space Society. Dicht mailed in his membership application in 1977, when he was a college-bound space enthusiast. He has been part of the Society’s story ever since.
For decades Dicht was a loyal member, reading the newsletters and cheering on NASA from afar. But as the space community entered the 21st century, with space shuttles flying, rovers on Mars, and private rockets emerging, Dicht felt the pull to become more deeply involved. He answered a call for volunteer leadership and joined NSS’s membership committee. His dedication and knack for organization quickly made an impact. Before long, he became NSS’s Vice President of Membership. In that capacity, he helped the Society engage and grow its worldwide community of “citizen astronauts.” These “citizen astronauts” are everyday people who believe in pushing humanity beyond earthly confines.
The Mission: “People Living and Working Off Earth”
Today, Dicht has traded his volunteer hat for a professional one as NSS’s Managing Director of Membership. It is a role that blends his lifelong passions. He works from an office at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The location is fitting—perched amid launching rockets and historic launchpads. There, he focuses on turning the Society’s vision into tangible momentum. “We like to think we are the preeminent citizens’ voice for space exploration, development, and settlement,” Dicht says. “Our mission is to ensure that there are people living and working in thriving communities off the Earth, and that we are using the vast resources of space for the betterment of humanity.”
That mission statement may sound ambitious, even utopian, but Dicht delivers it with steady conviction. He knows space is more than a playground for scientists or billionaires. It is a shared frontier whose dividends — from technological spinoffs to existential inspiration — uplift us all. Government priorities wax and wane, and billionaire space races grab headlines. In this climate, NSS stands out as a voice of the people. “The question always comes up, why space? Why should we do something like this?” Dicht muses. He points to history: humans have always sought what lies beyond the horizon. In doing so, we have advanced not only our knowledge but our civilization.
The space program, he points out, gave us satellites that connect the world. It brought medical innovations, from remote monitoring to new materials. And it offered a perspective that transcends borders. In his view, exploring space isn’t a luxury or a stunt. It is an extension of our human drive to learn and to improve life on Earth.
Advocacy and Ad Astra
Under Dicht’s stewardship, the National Space Society continues to champion a multifaceted approach to making our spacefaring future a reality. One pillar of NSS’s work is political advocacy. Every spring, the Society organizes its members for an event known as the “March Storm.” It’s a whirlwind of citizen lobbying on Capitol Hill. Space enthusiasts from all walks of life come together in Washington, D.C. They receive training on current space policy issues, then fan out to meet with congressional offices. Their message is unified: support space exploration and space settlement initiatives. Keep humanity’s future in space on the national agenda.
These grassroots lobbyists are armed with facts and genuine enthusiasm. They remind lawmakers that the public still cares about the final frontier. It’s a strategy born of an earlier era. Von Braun recognized in the 1970s that public will is as vital as engineering prowess for reaching Mars and beyond. That wisdom remains crucial today.
Beyond the halls of power, NSS focuses on informing and inspiring the public. Its quarterly magazine, Ad Astra, serves as a glossy chronicle of the present and future of spaceflight. (Ad Astra is Latin for “to the stars.”) Edited by accomplished space writers, Ad Astra showcases a bit of everything in the space realm. Its issues cover new rocket technologies, planetary probes, profiles of space entrepreneurs, and even visions of off-world settlements. In each issue, one might find a retrospective on Apollo’s legacy alongside an update on private lunar landers. This mix reflects the Society’s blend of history and forward-thinking.
Then there is the International Space Development Conference (ISDC), NSS’s flagship annual gathering. Dicht attended the very first ISDC in 1982 as a young engineer, and it left an impression. He has been back many times since. Today, he helps organize this conference that draws astronauts, engineers, policymakers, students, and enthusiasts from around the world. Over several days, attendees immerse themselves in all things space. There are panel discussions on Mars colonization and space law, hands-on workshops, and star-studded keynote speeches. It’s equal parts pep rally and strategy session for the space movement. “By attending an ISDC, you’ll meet the experts, learn what’s happening, ask questions, and hopefully make new contacts,” Dicht notes. The conference, he emphasizes, offers a unique mix of networking and inspiration. If Ad Astra is where space ideas are read, ISDC is where they are discussed face-to-face. Often it’s over coffee with an astronaut or drinks with a startup founder.
Education: From STEM to STEAM
Central to Dicht’s philosophy—and NSS’s programs—is the conviction that the future of space belongs to the young. It’s not enough to lobby Congress or publish magazines; a lasting spacefaring society requires investing in education. Dicht often points out that his own generation had the galvanizing jolt of Apollo to spark their dreams. “Kids today don’t have something big, a big event like that,” he says. So it falls to educators and advocates to light the spark in other ways. Through its Space Edge Academy platform, NSS offers lesson plans and resources for teachers to bring the cosmos into classrooms. It also sponsors contests and competitions for students around the world. These challenges invite kids to design space settlements, propose experiments, or create art about space exploration. The goal is not only to teach science and engineering, but to instill a sense of possibility. A student designing a moonbase for a contest today could be the engineer building a real lunar habitat tomorrow.
In discussing education, Dicht enthusiastically embraces STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math—but he’s quick to add the extra “A” as well. STEM becomes STEAM, incorporating the arts. Technical skills alone, he argues, aren’t enough if we want well-rounded innovators. Creative thinking, communication, and design have always gone hand in hand with science. Even in space engineering, drafting a spacecraft’s blueprints or imagining a future colony requires creativity. “Art is connected to all this as well,” Dicht explains. An engineer who understands music or painting is, in his mind, better prepared to dream up original solutions. This holistic approach to STEM reflects a broader cultural shift in education, one that NSS and Dicht champion. It recognizes that to push beyond Earth, humanity will need both the precision of scientists and the creativity of artists.
New Horizons at the Space Center
Perhaps nothing symbolizes Burt Dicht’s journey—and the evolving role of the National Space Society—better than the organization’s recent move to open an office at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. For many years, NSS was a diffuse entity with volunteers scattered across chapters and no central public presence. That changed when Dicht helped establish a physical office at the Center for Space Education, right next door to the rocket gardens and launch pads of Kennedy Space Center. Suddenly, NSS had a literal foothold on space’s home turf. “We’re at the center of where things are happening with space,” Dicht says with pride.
The new location not only lends symbolic weight, it has also spurred new initiatives. Chief among them is a revival of public tours. Back in the 1980s, NSS organized special tours for members to witness space shuttle launches. However, the unpredictability of launch schedules eventually made such events impractical. Now, with a permanent staff presence at Kennedy and partnerships with local space educators, Dicht is bringing the idea back. This time it’s focused on the broader experience of America’s spaceport. In early 2024, NSS launched an exclusive multi-day tour program at Kennedy Space Center. It also included visits to the adjacent Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Dicht worked with a Florida-based space education company to craft an extraordinary itinerary. It goes beyond what the average tourist would see. Participants might find themselves exploring historic launch complexes normally off-limits to the public. They could be guided by experts who share inside stories from the Apollo and Shuttle eras. They might chat with a veteran engineer over lunch. They might also stand on the causeway where families once watched Saturn V rockets roar skyward. “We’re certainly going to build on that,” Dicht says of the inaugural tour, “because this can truly be a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience for our members.” The success of this first outing has NSS already planning more. For a society devoted to bringing space to the people, planting roots at Kennedy was a logical next step. It allowed NSS to invite the public in like never before.
Carrying the Torch of Exploration
Burt Dicht’s life has unfolded in tandem with humanity’s halting steps into the cosmos. He was a child of Apollo, one of countless youngsters who peered upward during that golden age. He decided then to devote himself to the stars. Unlike the astronauts he idolized, Dicht never got the chance to launch into orbit. But in another sense, he’s been on a mission all these years. It’s a mission of advocacy, education, and relentless optimism about our future beyond Earth.
His journey reflects the broader cultural legacy of space exploration. When Neil Armstrong set foot on the Moon, it was not only a victory in a Cold War contest. It was also a seed planted in the imagination of the world. That seed took root in people like Dicht. He carried it through the lean years when public interest waned. Now that space is back in the spotlight, the passion planted by Apollo is flourishing again. The evolution of citizen-led advocacy in science owes much to individuals of Dicht’s generation. These were people who refused to let space exploration remain solely the domain of government agencies or elite specialists. They worked through groups like the National Space Society. They insisted that ordinary citizens could have a say in humanity’s destiny beyond Earth.
Now in his sixties, Dicht speaks with the measured enthusiasm of someone who has seen trends come and go. He has never lost faith in the long game. Space, for him, is not a passing fascination. It is the next chapter of the human story, one that will be written collectively. He often returns to the fundamental question: why space? And his answer is as philosophical as it is practical. We pursue space because we are curious, and because we are problem-solvers. Space also holds the keys to new knowledge and new solutions. Climate change, energy shortages, technological stagnation—Dicht believes space exploration can help address them all. It does so by expanding our perspective and tapping resources beyond our fragile planet. And beyond those tangible benefits, there’s the simple, profound allure of discovery. “Space offers all of this, plus the endless curiosity of what’s out there,” he says.
In an age flush with cynicism and short attention spans, Burt Dicht’s commitment stands out. It is at once idealistic and pragmatic. It is rooted in the memory of a boy who looked up at the Moon in wonder. It is also grounded in the reality of a man who has spent decades turning that wonder into action. As he continues to engage NSS members, mentor students, and speak at conferences, Dicht is effectively passing along a baton. It’s the same baton picked up from the likes of Wernher von Braun and Gerard O’Neill. They championed the idea of citizens furthering the space cause. That baton carries a simple message: the exploration of space is a human endeavor, and everyone is invited.
In the twilight of one career and the prime of another, Dicht doesn’t show signs of slowing. There are always more people to inspire, more minds to ignite with talk of rockets and Mars and beyond. In a classroom or a museum somewhere, another curious child is hearing for the first time that humans have ventured beyond Earth. Perhaps that child will look up in amazement, just as Dicht did in 1969. They might whisper to themselves, “I want to do that as well.” If so, Burt Dicht will be ready to welcome them into the growing fellowship.
