Thomas Zurbuchen
From October 2016 until the end of 2022, Thomas Zurbuchen was the Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA. The directorate’s stated mission is to find answers to some of humanity’s fundamental questions: How does the universe work? Where did we come from? Are we alone? And in leading the Science Mission directorate, Thomas was in effect the head scientist at NASA, overseeing the planning and launches of all of NASA’s major science missions, including the recent Artemis mission and James Webb Space Telescope. Prior to joining NASA, he was Professor of Space Science and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Michigan. He is the author or co-author of more than 200 articles in peer reviewed journals about solar and heliospheric phenomena. A native of Switzerland, Thomas earned his doctorate and Master of Science degrees in physics from the University of Bern prior to settling in the United States.