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NASA Chief Scientist

Senior science position at the NASA

Senior science position at the NASA

FieldValue
postNASA Chief Scientist
insigniaFile:NASA logo.svg
imageKatherine Calvin (NHQ202201100001 002).jpg
imagecaptionLast officeholder Dr. Katherine Calvin in 2022
statusPosition abolished
appointerNASA Administrator
reports_toNASA Administrator
formation1982
firstFrank B. McDonald
lastKatherine Calvin
abolishedMarch 10, 2025

Chief Scientist is the most senior science position at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The chief scientist serves as the principal advisor to the NASA Administrator in science issues and as interface to the national and international science community, ensuring that NASA research programs are scientifically and technologically well founded and are appropriate for their intended applications.

History

The Chief Scientist position was created to advise the NASA Administrator on budget, strategic objectives, and current content of NASA's science programs. The Chief Scientist works closely with appropriate representatives of the NASA Strategic Enterprises and the Field Centers, as well as advisory committees and the external community. The Chief Scientist represents the agency's scientific objectives and accomplishments to other federal agencies, industry, academia, other government organizations, the international community, and the general public.

The chief scientist chairs the NASA Science Council, a forum for discussion of the agency policies, practices, and issues from the viewpoint of the science disciplines.

The NASA chief scientist position was discontinued in September 2005 and many of the functions moved to be within the Science Mission Directorate (SMD).

The position was restored in 2011 and was eliminated for a second time in 2025.

List of chief scientists

The following is a list of NASA chief scientists. All officeholders have earned multiple masters and doctoral degrees in a hard science or engineering.

No.ImageNameTerm startTerm endNotes
1[[File:Frank B. McDonald.jpg70px]]Frank B. McDonald19821987
2[[File:Imagenoel-w-hinners-bw.jpg70px]]Noel Hinners19871989
3[[File:France A. Córdova official photo.jpg70px]]France A. Córdova19931996
4[[File:US Navy 090428-N-2852B-001 Dr. Kathie Olsen, senior adviser in the National Science Foundation Office of Information and Resource Management, speaks to employees of the Office of Naval Research.jpg70px]]Kathie L. OlsenMay 24, 1999April 2002
5[[File:ShannonLucid.jpeg70px]]Shannon LucidFebruary 2002September 2003
6[[File:John Grunsfeld.jpg70px]]John M. GrunsfeldSeptember 2003October 20, 2004
7[[File:51st Annual Robert H. Goddard Memorial Symposium (cropped).jpg70px]]James B. GarvinOctober 21, 2004September 2005url=https://nasawatch.com/news/new-nasa-chief-scientist/title=New NASA Chief Scientistfirst=Keithlast=Cowingwork=NASA Watchdate=October 21, 2004}}
Position was eliminated in September 2005 but was restored in January 2011
8[[File:Waleed Abdalati.JPG70px]]Waleed AbdalatiJanuary 3, 2011December 2012url=http://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/abdalati_bio.htmltitle=NASA - Dr. Waleed Abdalati, NASA Chief Scientistpublisher=NASAaccess-date=2011-05-16archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111019142156/http://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/abdalati_bio.htmlarchive-date=2011-10-19}}
acting[[File:Gale Allen.jpg70px]]Gale AllenDecember 2012August 24, 2013
9[[File:Ellen Stofan (10409828915).jpg70px]]Ellen StofanAugust 25, 2013December 2016
acting[[File:Gale Allen.jpg70px]]Gale AllenDecember 2016April 30, 2018
10[[File:James L Green.jpg70px]]Jim GreenMay 1, 2018December 31, 2021
11[[File:Katherine Calvin (NHQ202201100001 002) (cropped).jpg70px]]Katherine CalvinJanuary 10, 2022March 11, 2025url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-announces-new-chief-scientist-senior-climate-advisortitle=NASA Announces New Chief Scientist, Senior Climate Advisorwork=NASAdate=January 10, 2022access-date=January 11, 2022}}
Position was eliminated in March 2025.

References

References

  1. [http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/codez/plans/FLPs/AS-FLP.pdf NASA.gov]
  2. [http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov/iso_docs/pdf/H_OWI_1150_AE000_001_B_.pdf NASA.gov]
  3. "Chief Scientist History". NASA.
  4. (November 5, 2003). "Voyager Space Science Update Panelists". NASA [[Goddard Space Flight Center]].
  5. "Noel Hinners, Former NASA Scientist, Dies at 78 - NYTimes.com".
  6. (September 6, 2014). "Noel Hinners - NASA Watch".
  7. Vitello, Paul. (September 11, 2014). "Noel W. Hinners, Voice for Scientific Research at NASA, Dies at 78". The New York Times.
  8. Weil, Martin. (September 9, 2014). "Noel Hinners, a top NASA official, dies at 78".
  9. (2007-07-05). "NASA Technical Reports Server". Ntrs.nasa.gov.
  10. (1999-05-19). "Kathie L. Olsen Selected As Nasa Chief Scientist | Nasa | Find Articles At Bnet". [[Findarticles.com]].
  11. (1999-05-24). ":: NASA Quest > Women of NASA ::". Quest.arc.nasa.gov.
  12. "Chief Scientist History - NASA".
  13. "NASA Biographical Data - SHANNON W. LUCID".
  14. (2007-11-22). "NASA - Chief Scientist John M. Grunsfeld". Nasa.gov.
  15. Cowing, Keith. (October 21, 2004). "New NASA Chief Scientist". NASA Watch.
  16. "NASA - Dr. James B. Garvin Chief Scientist". NASA.
  17. (September 28, 2005). "News in brief". [[Nature (journal).
  18. "NASA - Dr. Waleed Abdalati, NASA Chief Scientist". NASA.
  19. (December 13, 2010). "NASA Names Waleed Abdalati as Agency's New Chief Scientist". NASA.
  20. Cowing, Keith. (December 26, 2012). "NASA's Chief Scientist is Departing". NASA Watch.
  21. Beutel, Allard. (July 29, 2013). "NASA Welcomes New Chief Scientist". NASA.
  22. Foust, Jeff. (December 29, 2016). "NASA's chief scientist departs". [[SpaceNews]].
  23. (April 11, 2018). "ASGSR Announces Dr. Gale Allen, Former NASA Deputy Chief Scientist, as Executive Director". [[SpaceNews]].
  24. (April 10, 2018). "NASA Announces New Chief Scientist". NASA.
  25. (January 10, 2022). "NASA Announces New Chief Scientist, Senior Climate Advisor". NASA.
  26. (2025-03-11). "NASA fires climate researcher Katherine Calvin, the agency's chief scientist".
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