Robert S. Smith email:  bo_smith@bellsouth.net   Last Updated: April 11th, 2008

 My name is Bo Smith. I retired as an educator May, 2007, after teaching Earth/Space Science, Oceanography, and Environmental Science at the high school level for sixteen years in Jacksonville. Florida. During that period, I was fortunate to work with several space related activities; first with Florida State University's "Florida Explores'" satellite meteorology program, second as Program Manager and Instructor in the Florida Protein Crystals in Space Program where we were involved in three space shuttle launches to the International Space Station and lastly as an Aerospace Education Mentor (AEM) for the Florida Space Research Institute (FSRI). As an AEM, I  conducted teacher workshops and mentored teachers in northeast Florida. See my website  Exploring Moon and Mars Geology to see some of the details of my FSRI AEM job.  I continue inmy interest in lunar and Mars Geology and have updated my Moon and Mars Geology website to include  NASA's Constellation Program, the exploration of the Moon and Mars including crewed missions.  I also have an Educational Services business in Earth and Space Systems Science where I offer home school teaching, teacher workshops, teacher mentoring, Science Fair project supervision, and student tutoring on a case by case basis. For more professional information, please click on my Professional Page link.

I am looking forward getting busy by working on some of my research interests and doing some travelling and 'rock hounding' . For more information about my post retirement plans, check out my Personal Page link.

I graduated from Cornell University in 1963 with a BA in Geology.  Following graduation, I attended Navy Jet Flight Training earning my "Wings of Gold" in February 1965.  I retired from the Navy in July, 1991 as a Captain after a 28 year career in the Navy.  I flew over 4000 hours in Navy carrier jet aircraft including over 900 carrier landings and completed  over 400 combat missions over north and south Vietnam in 1966, 1967, and 1972.  Highlights of my Navy career included: flying Vietnam combat missions in the A4 Skyhawk with my shipmates in the Navy's finest squadron, the Valions of Attack Squadron Fifteen; my second tour in VA-15 as Commanding Officer of an A7 carrier squadron which received the Battle "E" as the Navy's best light attack squadron; as Commanding Officer of VA-174, an A7 Fleet Replacement Squadron which provided training for pilots and maintenance personnel prior to assignemnt to their fleet squadron; as Executive Officer of an aircraft carrier, USS Saratoga CV-60; as Commanding Officer of the USS Austin LPD-4, an amphibious ship which included several "special operations" in the eastern Mediterreanean Sea; and as Operations Officer of Commander Fleet Air Western Pacific (COMFAIRWESTPAC) in Atsugi, Japan where I was in charge of coordinating opposition air forces for Seventh Fleet exercises and had a special assignment involving the initial planning for the Desert Storm air strike in the First Gulf War.

"To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield" Tennyson, "Ulysses"

Click HERE for 'High Flight'