Advisors
The EA Board of Advisors is a group of distinguished business and aerospace veterans who bring rich experiences in space, space flight, and extended space operations. Each member of the Board of Advisors has made significant contributions to major space achievements in some of the most challenging chapters of human space flight or in other successful business or academic arenas. Their wisdom and involvement assures EA access to a broad spectrum of expert advice in operating safely and efficiently.
George W. S. Abbey
Few people have had a bigger impact on human spaceflight than "Mr. Abbey."
He is currently Senior Fellow for Space Policy at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. As Director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston from 1996 to 2001, Mr. Abbey was in charge of NASA's Human Space Flight programs, including the space shuttle and International Space Station programs.
Mr. Abbey has been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, NASA's Exceptional Service Medal, and NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal.
He joined NASA in 1967. His experiences include: Technical Assistant to the manager of the Apollo Program; Technical Assistant to the JSC Director during both the Skylab space station project in 1973 and the Apollo-Soyuz U.S.-Soviet space cooperative venture in 1975; Director of Flight Operations from 1976 to 1985; and Director of Flight Crew Operations until 1988, at which time he became Deputy Associate Administrator for the Office of Space Flight.
Mr. Abbey has also served on important planning and policy boards, such as the Synthesis Group, and was Senior Director for Civil Space Policy for the National Space Council, in the Executive Office of the President.
Before joining NASA, Mr. Abbey was a pilot and an officer in the United States Air Force.
He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Naval Academy and a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology.
Franklin R. Chang-Díaz, PhD
Dr. Franklin R. Chang-Diaz holds a space record for flying on seven space shuttle missions, and has logged over 1,601 hours in space, including 19 hours and 31 minutes in three spacewalks. In total he served for 25 years as a NASA astronaut.
Dr. Chang-Diaz is also the inventor of the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR) plasma rocket engine, which promises to greatly reduce interplanetary travel times, as well as other advanced propulsion technologies.
Following his graduation from the University of Connecticut in 1973, he entered graduate school at MIT, becoming heavily involved in the United States’ controlled fusion program and doing intensive research in the design and operation of fusion reactors.
He obtained his doctorate in the field of applied plasma physics and fusion technology and, in that same year, joined the technical staff of the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory. His work at Draper was geared strongly toward the design and integration of control systems for fusion reactor concepts and experimental devices, in both inertial and magnetic confinement fusion.
As a visiting scientist with the M.I.T. Plasma Fusion Center from October 1983 to December 1993, he led the plasma propulsion program there to develop this technology for future human missions to Mars. From December 1993 to July 2005 Dr. Chang-Dìaz served as Director of the Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center where he continued his research on plasma rockets. He is an Adjunct Professor of Physics at Rice University and the University of Houston and has presented numerous papers at technical conferences and in scientific journals.
Dr. Chang-Diaz is also President and CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company, with facilities in Houston and Liberia, Costa Rica.
He has received numerous special honors, including he Liberty Medal from President Ronald Reagan at the Statue of Liberty Centennial Celebration in New York City in 1986, 2 NASA Distinguished Service Medals, and 3 NASA Exceptional Service Medals.
Brigadier General Jean-Loup Chretien
Brigadier General Jean-Loup Chretien, French Air Force (ret.) is the President of Tietronix Optics. The first Western European space traveler, as well as the first non-American, non-Soviet spacewalker, M. Chretien spent 43 days in space, on both Soyuz and Space Shuttle missions. He was awarded the titles of Hero of the Soviet Union, the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, Commandeur de la Legion d'Honneur; Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Merite; and was awarded the Meaille de l'Aeonautique, as well as NASA's Space Flight Medal (USA). He serves as a board member for the Academie de l' Air et de l' Espace, and of the French Air and Space Museum. He is also a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the International Academy of Astronautics, and the Association of Space Explorers. He holds a Master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the French Air Force Academy.
Jay Honeycutt
Mr. Jay Honeycutt is the former President of Lockheed-Martin Space Operations Company in Houston, Texas, and is the current Senior Lockheed-Martin Vice President for Space Exploration, as well as Lockheed-Martin's Representative to NASA.
Previously, Mr. Honeycutt was Director of NASA's Kennedy Space Center, at Cape Canaveral, and before that, he was the KSC Director of Shuttle Management and Operations, responsible for engineering management and technical direction of preflight, launch, landing and recovery activities for space shuttle vehicles.
Mr. Honeycutt began his Government career at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, as an engineer in 1960. He began his NASA career at the Johnson Space Center (JSC), Houston, Texas, in 1966 as an engineer in Flight Operations for the Apollo Program. He subsequently served in several key positions in Flight Operations.
Mr. Honeycutt has been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and both NASA's Exceptional Service Medal and Exceptional Achievement Medal.
He is also a Lecturer at the International Space University.
Dr. Yasunori Matogawa
Dr. Yasunori Matogawa is widely considered to be the most prominent person in Japanese space education today.
As the former Associate Executive Director of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), he reported directly to the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, Sports and Technology. Until his recent retirement, he served as the Director of JAXA’s Space Education Center.
He is also the former Director of the Kagoshima Space Center in Kyushu.
Internationally, he is known for his service as the Vice President of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF).
Following his graduate studies in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Tokyo, Professor Matogawa has been engaged in projects to design and launch rockets, satellites, and spacecraft.
He has also been a long time advocate of, and participant in, international aerospace cooperation. He is deeply committed to educating and promoting space science for the general public and children.
Upon his retirement from JAXA in 2008, he created and endowed a non-profit foundation for space education, named the Kodomo Uchu Mirai Association, which translated, means ‘Children Space Future Association’.
Colonel Vladimir Titov
Colonel Vladimir Titov, Russian Air Force (retired) is a hugely experienced cosmonaut who set a record for spending more than a year in space for the first time. Selected to join the cosmonaut team in 1976, he went on to fly four missions and spend a total of 387 days in space.
Colonel Titov also trained for missions using the Almaz spacecraft, and is intimately familiar with its hardware and systems.
He made his first space flight as commander of Soyuz T-8, which was due to rendezvous with Salyut 7 but docking was aborted once in orbit after the rendezvous radar antenna failed to properly deploy. Colonel Titov was then scheduled to fly on Soyuz T-10, but a fire shortly before launch saw the mission dramatically aborted with the crew escaping after the descent module was pulled clear by the launch escape system.
Colonel Titov went on to set a world record for the length of time spent in space with a mission to Mir that lasted close to 366 days. Two space shuttle missions later took Colonel Titov back to Mir, the first during which he practiced Shuttle-Mir rendezvous maneuvers and another that saw him perform a spacewalk with his American crewmate.
Having retired from the Air Force and the Russian Space Agency in 1998, he served as Director of Space and Communications for the Boeing Company in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. In this role he was responsible for Boeing's space and communications resources throughout the region and for providing support for all space related activities.
Colonel Titov has been awarded honors including the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, the Order of Lenin twice, the Commandeur de la Legion d'Honneur, the Bulgarian Order of Stara Planina, and the U.S. Harmon Prize.
He graduated from the Higher Air Force College in Chernigov in Ukraine and the Yuri Gagarin Air Force Academy, and holds an MBA degree from the International University in Moscow.