Neufeld, Michael John
Dr,
German rocketry; early rocket development; U.S. space and guided-missile history; planetary exploration; World War II, the Holocaust, and strategic bombing.
Positions
- Senior Curator, National Air & Space Museum
Geographic Focus
- Europe Continent
- Germany Country
- United States Country
Background And Education
Education And Training
- Ph.D. in Modern European History, Johns Hopkins University 1980 - 1984
- M.A. in Modern European History, Johns Hopkins University 1978 - 1980
- M.A. in Modern European History, University of British Columbia 1974 - 1976
- B.A. in History, University of Calgary , First Class Honours 1970 - 1974
Professional Biography
- Clarkson University, 1983-85; SUNY Oswego 1985-86; Colgate University, 1986-88; NASM fellow 1988-90; NASM Museum Curator, 1990-2014, Senior Curator, 2014-
Awards And Honors
- Smithsonian Distinguished Scholar Award, conferred by Smithsonian Institution, 2017
- Secretary's Research Prize, conferred by Smithsonian Institution, 2013
- Richard W. Leopold Prize , conferred by Organization of American Historians, 2008
- Los Angeles Time Book Prize, Finalist, conferred by Los Angeles Times, 2008
- Secretary's Research Prize, conferred by Smithsonian Institution, 2008
- Dexter Prize, conferred by Society for the History of Technology, 1997
- History Manuscript Award , conferred by American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics , 1995
Public Biography
- Michael J. Neufeld is a Senior Curator in the Space History Division of the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution, where he is responsible for the early rocket collection and for Mercury and Gemini spacecraft. He is also the lead curator of the Destination Moon exhibit project. Born and raised in Canada, he has four history degrees, including a PhD from Johns Hopkins University in 1984. Dr. Neufeld has written four books, The Skilled Metalworkers of Nuremberg (1989), The Rocket and the Reich (1995), Von Braun (2007) and Spaceflight (2018). He has edited five others: Planet Dora, The Bombing of Auschwitz, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Spacefarers, and Milestones of Space. In 2017 Secretary David Skorton gave him the Smithsonian Distinguished Scholar Award, the highest research award of the Institution.
Contact
Location
- National Air & Space Museum Academic Department
