News

PASADENA, Calif. – Charles Elachi, director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., has announced three personnel appointments effective on Aug. 15. Firouz M. Naderi has been named the Director for Solar System Exploration. Naderi has been serving as JPL's Associate Director for Project Formulation and Strategy, a position that will now be filled by Jakob van Zyl. In addition, Dave Gallagher will become the Director for Astronomy, Physics and Space Technology.

In his new role, Naderi will oversee JPL's robotic solar system missions, including new projects under development and such currently operating projects as the Cassini orbiter at Saturn and the Dawn spacecraft at the giant asteroid Vesta, as well as two missions about to be launched: Juno to Jupiter and GRAIL to Earth's moon. In addition, he will be responsible for JPL's work supporting NASA's human spaceflight program, which is being merged into the laboratory's Solar System Exploration Directorate.

In naming him to this new position, Elachi said, "Firouz brings a unique wealth of experience in project, program and institutional management, as well as NASA Headquarters experience. In the past, whenever I have had an organizational challenge or opportunity, Firouz is one of the first people I have turned to. Fifteen years ago, I asked him to shape the Origins program, which technologically put us in a leadership position that still pays dividends. In 2000, in a critical time in the l... >>>