Salvador Landeros Ayala

A pioneer of the space theme in our country, Dr. Landeros served in 1985 as Director of the National Satellite System, launching into orbit the start of operations of the first generation of telecommunications satellites in Mexico, the Morelos I and II, and was also responsible for the Engineering Division, the Satellite Control Division (TTC), the Earth Station Division, and the Commercial Division, leading a team of one hundred people.

With an extensive academic career, he has been a visiting professor and member of the Department Council at the Polytechnic University of Madrid. In the Faculty of Engineering of the UNAM, he has served as full-time tenured professor in the area of Telecommunications, coordinator of Special Projects and Engineering Tower; Secretary of Postgraduate Studies and Research, head of the Division of Graduate Studies; responsible for Engineering Careers in Telecommunications, Computing, and Electronic Electrical, with 40 years of academic experience.

In the industry, he has served as general director of Telecommunication Project Consulting at TELSAT, S. A. de C.V. for large companies such as Petrleos Mexicanos, Federal Electricity Commission, Grupo Cifra, Comercial Mexicana, Banamex, Probursa, or Grupo ICA, as well as in Téléphones de México S.A. de C.V. He was manager of the Satellite Network in the Telephone Development Directorate; he designed and put into operation the largest network of earth stations in the country; he was also a Project Engineer, and directed the expansion and supply of the sector.

He has received several awards, among others, from the Mexican Government for contributing to the country's telecommunications; for the dedication and dedication to the professional training of the first generation of Telecommunications Engineers at the UNAM; and for participating in activities that benefit the AIUME Electromechanical Engineers Guild.

He has also obtained multiple awards, such as the Pan-American Order of Merit for Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial Engineering and related branches; 2017 National Engineering Award from the College of Mechanical Electrical Engineers; AIUME Award for Professional Excellence 2016; INGENET Recognition; Winner in the VII Competition of the UPM Technology-Based Business Creation Program and Recognition of University Merit, among others.

During his tenure as Director General of AEM, in December 2019, Space-X successfully launched “AzTechSat-1", the first Mexican Nanosatelite on the International Space Station (ISS), from NASA's facilities in Cape Canaveral.

Currently, the second phase of four Nanosatellites, “AzTechSat Constellation”, is being developed with NASA itself and universities in the country, since, due to its innovation, AzTechSat-1 obtained wide international recognition and was included in the publication “20 Years of Science-EEI”.

“Colmena”, the first microrobot project in Latin America to arrive and operate successfully in the lunar orbit, in January 2024, was supported by the AEM and proudly developed with Mexican technology from the UNAM.

He was part of the leadership for the creation of the Latin American and Caribbean Space Agency, an instrument of international cooperation that will coordinate exploration, research, and technology with the objective of sharing space and satellite resources in the face of shared regional challenges, and signed Mexico's adherence to the Artemis agreements.

In April 2023, the results of its 2019-2023 management were subject to the scrutiny of a performance audit by the Federal Supreme Audit Office (ASF), with zero observations being determined.

It has promoted the formation of a large amount of human space capital with universities in a multitude of projects. It implemented the start of operations of two regional space development centers in the country, and has collaborated with entities such as the G-20 or the United Nations, with the objective of consolidating the country's full inclusion in the international space community.