Today is International Women in Engineering Day – a commemoration that is just 12 years old. Long before there was any specific recognition for women in engineering careers, many women were quietly making an impact with visionary thinking and hard work.

For example, Virginia Norwood designed the first space-based multispectral scanner that flew on the first Landsat—an instrument that went on to define many aspects of modern remote sensing.

Did you know that surveyors played a key role in creating our national parks? Our first park, Yellowstone (founded 1872), introduced the national park concept to the public and other parks soon followed – all this when most people still lived east of the Mississippi and most would not have the opportunity to see these natural wonders in person.