12/02/2026
Did you know?
Edward Festus Mukuka Nkoloso born in 1919 and died 1989. Was a schoolteacher, former soldier, and independence activist, Nkoloso founded the Zambia National Academy of Science, Space Research and Philosophy in 1960.
At the height of the Cold War space race, he aimed to place Zambia ahead of both the United States and the Soviet Union by sending the first humans to the moon and Mars.
He aimed to establish a Christian mission on Mars and make Zambia the "controllers of the seventh heaven of interstellar space".
But unfortunately, the ambitious, largely self-funded program never launched due to lack of funds and several other reasons.
Though the project failed, Nkoloso made international headlines, and his story is a well-known, humorous, and inspiring anecdote of African ambition. He is considered a symbol of "imagining life beyond their limits".
Respect 🤯.