UCM Alumni
Related Links
2007 Distinguished Alumni Recipient - Phil Sumrall
Phil Sumrall is one of four University of Central Missouri alumni who received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2007 from the UCM Alumni Association.
Sumrall, a 1961 math and physics graduate, heads NASA's efforts to develop a new generation heavy-lift launch vehicle as manager of advanced planning in the Exploration Launch Projects Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL. He is leading the development of the Ares I and Ares V launch vehicles for trips to the moon and Mars.
Sumrall's career with NASA started when he was recruited by its first director, Wernher von Bruan, in 1962 as a junior engineer. His first project was to help build the Saturn V rocket, used by the Apollo program to take the first humans to the moon. His newest project, Ares V, will deliver large hardware and supplies to space for use by lunar exploration missions and to extend a human presence throughout the solar system.
Read a feature about Sumrall appearing in the Fall 2007 UCM Today.
