A SHORT HISTORY OF THE ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES AT THE BRAZILIAN NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR SPACE RESEARCH

The Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE, acronym in Portuguese) is an institute in charge of activities related to space, which include not only Science, but also Aerospace Engineering, covering the development of the Brazilian satellites. The majority of the facilities are located in São José dos Campos (SP), but it also has activities in Santa Maria (RS), Natal (RN), Belém (PA), São Luís (MA), Cachoeira Paulista (SP), Eusébio (CE), Atibaia (SP), São Paulo (SP), Cuiabá (MT), Brasília (DF), and San Martino da Serra (RS). The Institute will complete 50 years in August 2011, and many important achievements in the space field were made in these five decades. Although the INPE is not a dedicated academic institution, it has a strong and large graduate school, which offers courses at the master and doctoral levels. This academic structure is very important for the Institute, and graduate students are involved in several important research projects organized by the institution. The main goal of the present text is to show some details about this activity.