Michael Griffin (Griffin) returns to NASA as the 11th director of the agency. He officially and practically took up his post at NASA headquarters in Washington on Thursday, April 14, the day the 11th crew was launched to the International Space Station.
Michael Griffin (Griffin) returns to NASA as the 11th director of the agency. He officially and practically took up his post at NASA headquarters in Washington on Thursday, April 14, the day the 11th crew was launched to the International Space Station.
"I have great confidence in the group that will carry our nation's exciting, outward-facing, goal-driven space program," Griffin said. "I share with the agency a very great excitement because we have been given a special privilege - the great opportunity to expand the limits of man in the solar system."
Griffin, who served as NASA's chief engineer early in his career, takes command of the agency as it is in the midst of a change in direction. The space shuttle fleet is ready to return to flight, the first step in realizing the vision for space exploration - a bold plan to return humans to the moon, a journey to Mars and beyond.
In his first address to NASA employees, Griffin announced that he would immediately focus on return-to-flight efforts and noted that the agency has a busy schedule. "It's going to be hard, it's going to be hectic, but we'll do it together," he said.
He also told employees that he had encountered no criticism of President Bush's vision: "People want a space program that aims for something and does something," he said.
Griffin was nominated by President George W. Bush on March 14, 2005, and approved by the US Senate on April 13, 2005. At the hearing on April 12, Griffin clarified that the "strategic vision for the United States mission for manned flights is to go outside the low orbit (LEO - Low Earth Orbit) where the manned activity has been carried out since the end of the Apollo operation."
In his statement to the committee, Griffin said, "For a national leader to call for bold exploration of unknown worlds is a bold step and a tremendous effort at the limit of our technology." He then added, "In the twenty-first century and beyond, in order for America to continue to be prominent among nations, it is essential to also be the prominent nation in terms of presence in space." Griffin also added that despite the limited resources, "NASA can do more than one thing at a time."
"My conclusion is that we as a nation can clearly afford to plan and implement robust and well-executed programs, also in robotic and human space exploration, as well as in aeronautics. We know that. We did it," he said, referring to the agency's achievements during the Apollo era.
He ended his statement with a call for research: "There is no doubt that the vast majority of Americans would prefer to spend it in a gratifying, outwardly focused, goal-oriented space program. And this is the purpose of the president's space exploration vision."
Prior to his appointment, Griffin served as head of the Space Department at the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University. Before that, he was president and chief active manager at In-Q-Tel Ltd. He also served in several positions at the Orbital Sciences Corporation, including the Chief Executive Officer of Magellan Systems.
Prior to that, Griffin served as chief engineer and board member at NASA Headquarters and worked at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). He also served as Vice President of Technology at the Strategic Defense Program Organization (an American military program aimed at protecting the US from enemy missile attack by destroying them while in the air, what was once called Star Wars).
Griffin earned a bachelor's degree in physics at Johns Hopkins University; Master's Degree in Aerospace Sciences from The Catholic University of America; a professor's degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Maryland; Master's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Southern California; M.A. in Applied Physics from Johns Hopkins University; MBA from Levia College; and a master's degree in civil engineering from John Washington University.
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