""Five, four, three, two, one, ignition - we have liftoff!" How many times have we heard these words on television and in film - words that preceded launches at Cape Canaveral, including the historic Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo flights of the 1960s and 1970s? Likewise, phrases such as "Beam me up, Scotty" and "Energize!" have become part of our everyday vocabulary, thanks to the long-term influence of the Star Trek television shows and films since the 1960s.".

"When we think of the design professionals who work on these movies and television programs, we immediately think of set and costume designers. Despite our superficial familiarity with rocketry and space travel from the media, few of us think of architects, civil engineers, industrial designers, and graphic designers as actively involved in space exploration.

This volume, which is published on the occasion of an exhibition at The Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Flight in Seattle, focuses on the integral role that these design professionals play in the implementation of the dream of space travel."--BOOK JACKET.