Mission Success

Successfully executing space missions remains a high-risk, unforgiving venture—mission assurance is the disciplined application of proven scientific, engineering, quality, and program management principles toward the goal of achieving mission success.

Revolutionizing the way nations operate in space

Originally developed by the military to enhance airborne, marine, and land-based operations, the Global Positioning System (GPS) is critical to national security space and has revolutionized the way nations operate in space—from guidance systems to crewed vehicles, to the management, tracking, and control of communication satellites, to monitoring the Earth from space.

Related People

Dr. Henry Helvajian

Associate Director, Space Sciences Department

Dr. Henry Helvajian joined Aerospace in 1984 and is a senior scientist in the Physical Sciences Laboratories. In this role, he has investigated the applications of micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) to space systems and in the miniaturization of satellites and satellite subsystems. He was involved in the design of the first 1-kg mass nanosatellite and in the development of various space microthrusters.

Dr. Margaret Chen

Associate Director, Space Sciences Department

Dr. Margaret Chen is an expert in near-Earth space and the magnetospheric environment who has worked at Aerospace for 24 years. She holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of California, Irvine, and a master’s and Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Los Angeles.

James Vedda

Senior Policy Analyst

Dr. James Vedda has been with the Aerospace Corporation in Arlington, Virginia since March 2004 performing policy research and analyses for various U.S. government customers, including NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Department of Commerce, the Air Force, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and others.

Dr. Marty Ross

Senior Project Engineer, Commercial Launch Projects

Dr. Martin Ross joined Aerospace in 1988, and currently leads research concerning the effects of space systems on the stratosphere; specifically, the impact of rocket engine emissions on stratospheric ozone. He is developing new interagency strategies to better understanding the scientific, economic, and policy implications of the impact of space systems on stratospheric ozone.

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Name

Jen Langone

Email address

jennifer.e.langone@aero.org