2023 NASA Engineering & Safety Center Honor Awards

NESC Director’s Award

David J. Alexander
In recognition of his determination to communicate critical concerns with spacesuit helmet washout performance test methods, analysis, and interpretation.

NESC Leadership Award

H. Charles Dischinger
In recognition of outstanding leadership and sustained commitment to the NESC Human Factors Technical Discipline Team.

NESC Engineering Excellence Award

Joseph B. Anderson
In recognition of engineering excellence and technical expertise employed to abate the Orion flywheel exercise device acoustic emissions.

Michael Beamesderfer
In recognition of engineering excellence and technical leadership in conducting the Assessment of Degradation in Microfabricated Detectors and MEMS Devices.

Richard Blank
In recognition of engineering excellence in investigating the Commercial Crew Program Pyro Initiator lot acceptance test failure.

James Bontempo
In recognition of engineering excellence in technical analysis and problem resolution to some of NASA’s most challenging issues in human space flight.

Ari D. Brown
In recognition of engineering excellence and technical leadership in conducting the Assessment of Degradation in Microfabricated Detectors and MEMS Devices.

Jesse C. Couch
In recognition of engineering excellence in the development and analysis of an innovative and cost-effective solution to improve crew safety by reducing Commercial Crew Program software erroneous output risk.

Edward B. Jackson
In recognition of engineering excellence and technical leadership in establishing innovative approaches and applying sound engineering rigor in analyzing the Commercial Crew Program software erroneous output risk.

Karl Kahre
In recognition of engineering excellence for the rigorous development of Artemis I and II test-based loads predictions for the Orion Crew Module Uprighting System.

Jayanta Panda
In recognition of engineering excellence in the innovative implementation of a Microphone Phased Array demonstrating the feasibility to measure launch vehicle engine acoustic energy intensity.

John Puryear
In recognition of engineering excellence in the development of a continuous multibody uprighting model of the Orion Crew Module with wave coupling and soft goods deformability.

Stephen J. Scotti
In recognition of engineering excellence in the development and execution of analyses and test approaches for the Orion Heat Shield Char Loss Investigation.

Brian K. Tulaba
In recognition of engineering excellence demonstrated in the development of micrometeoroid and orbital debris risk assessments for the Mars Sample Return Capture, Containment, and Return System.

Timothy J. Wray
In recognition of engineering excellence in the evaluation of methods and measurement uncertainty for dynamics-based liquid mass gauging.

NESC Administrative Award

Ella Mamtsis
In recognition of exceptional leadership in the NESC Portal redesign project exhibited by driving quality outputs, ensuring stakeholder alignment, and promoting cross-functional teamwork.

NESC Group Achievement Award

Unconservatism of Linear-Elastic Fracture Mechanics Analysis Post-Autofrettage Assessment Team
In recognition of outstanding technical achievement in the evaluation of compressive stresses in thin-walled COPVs and the relationship to liner damage tolerance.
(award accepted by David Dawicke on behalf of the team)

NESC Portal Integration Team
In recognition of outstanding achievement in the development and redesign of the NESC Portal.
(award accepted by Nga Pham on behalf of the team)