Dr. Sandra Cauffman | Head of Earth Sciences NASA

Sandra Cauffman, Director of Earth Science NASA, will be speaking at the Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles on April 17, 2020.

The Role and Benefits of Earth Observations from the Vantage Point of Space

The ability to sustain life and prosperity on Planet Earth requires a concerted effort to design and deploy a more capable, flexible and internationally coordinated constellation of space assets to monitor the oceans, land, and atmosphere.   

The stakes get higher with more population, infrastructure, and higher stress on ecosystems. Earth Observations from the vantage point of space play an important role in understanding the Earth system and provide significant benefit to improve our lives here on Earth. 

___________________________________________

Mrs. Cauffman currently serves as the Director (Acting) of the Earth Science Division, in the Science Mission Directorate at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Headquarters.  She provides executive leadership, strategic direction, and overall management for the entire agency’s multi-billion Earth Science portfolio, from technology development, applied science, research, mission implementation and operation.  She has served as the Deputy Director since May 2016. Prior to joining NASA HQ, Mrs. Cauffman worked at the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) for 25 years serving on a variety of roles such as Deputy Systems Program Director for the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-R Series, a multi-billion-dollar operational geostationary weather satellite program developed in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); Deputy Project Manager for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) Mission, which is a NASA planetary mission launched on November 2013; Assistant Director for Flight Projects Directorate, and others.  Mrs. Cauffman has been awarded the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal and she is a two-time recipient of the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal. She is a four times recipient of the NASA Acquisition Improvement Award, and numerous GSFC and HQ awards.  She is a Senior Fellow on the Council for Excellence in Government. She is an Honorary Member of the National Academy of Sciences, Costa Rica. She received a B.S. in Physics, a B.S in Electrical Engineering and a M.S. in Electrical Engineering, all from George Mason University.  Mrs. Cauffman was born in Costa Rica and is fluent in Spanish.