'Avatar' Director Talks Space Fact and Fiction with NASA Chief

by SPACE.com Staff

Date: 29 January 2010 Time: 05:56 PM ET

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, right, and award-winning writer-director James Cameron, meet at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 19, 2010.
CREDIT: NASA/Bill Ingalls

It was space science meets science fiction.

Writer-director James Cameron, following the release of his much-heralded "Avatar" movie, met with NASA Administrator Charles Bolden at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. on January 19.

The pair discussed science education, and how to engage the public in scientific exploration, among other subjects.

Cameron, who formerly served on the NASA Advisory Council, has had a life-long interest in space and science, as evidenced by several of his other films. "Aliens" concerned space travel and extraterrestrial life forms. "The Abyss" dealt with underwater military and industrial operations, while two Terminator movies featured futuristic lethal cyborgs.

All of these films represented huge box office successes, and could very well inspire the next generations of space scientists and engineers.