Farouk El-Baz
Soon after beginning with the Apollo Program, he was put to work poring over mountains of detailed photographs of the Moon's surface—a crucial step in selecting the most ideal and precise landing location based on lunar terrain, climate variations, and other factors. He also performed the same role for the famous Apollo 15 Lunar Roving Vehicle rover mission, and trained Apollo astronauts in the important skills of visual observation and space photography, in addition to instructing crew members on which rocks to collect and how to collect lunar soil. So pivotal was he to Apollo that in Tom Hanks' HBO TV-series, "From the Earth to the Moon", El-Baz's role as an Apollo scientist and astronaut trainer was featured in a segment entitled, "The Brain of Farouk El-Baz," and a shuttle craft named "El-Baz" soared through the popular TV-series "".