Consulting Prof. Scott Hubbard Appointed to NASA's Science Committee

Consulting Professor Scott Hubbard has received a two-year appointment to the Science Committee of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Advisory Council. The scope of the Science Committee includes all NASA Earth and space science-related programs, projects, activities, and facilities. The committee has special interests in astrophysics, earth science, heliophysics, planetary protection, and planetary science.

Prof. Hubbard said that he was honored to be invited to serve on this important committee at such a critical time in NASA's evolution. Budgetary pressures will require the committee to look carefully at proposed science missions and their costs. He expects that as an at-large member of the committee he will be drawing on his more than 35 years of experience in science, engineering, space-related research, and successful management of large programs.

Prof. Hubbard's career includes twenty years with NASA that culminated as director of NASA's Ames Research Center here in Silicon Valley. He was NASA's first Mars program director, successfully restructured the entire Mars program, and conceived the Mars Pathfinder mission. He was also the founder of NASA's Astrobiology Institute and the manager for NASA's Lunar Prospector mission.

In Stanford's Aero/Astro Department, Prof. Hubbard's interests include the human and robotic exploration of space with an emphasis on new mission concepts and advanced technology. The current focus of his research group is on robotic Mars exploration, particularly the proposed Mars Sample Return Campaign. Recently, Prof. Hubbard and a Stanford-led team were selected to be part of a Center of Excellence for Commercial Space Transportation, a research program for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).