TCEP Space
Appointment of International Space Station Science Officers
On Monday 16 September 2002, NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe named Expedition Five Crew Astronaut
Doctor Peggy Whitson , biochemist, the first NASA International Space Station Science Officer.The NASA ISS Science Officer is a new responsibility to be carried out by a NASA astronaut of each future ISS Expedition Crew. The Science Officer will currently focus on American research conducted aboard the space station and work with the research community to understand and meet the requirements and objectives of each experiment. This is intended to help maximise the scientific research returns. The Science Officer will continue to be the point-of-contact for the space station's crew with NASA-sponsored principal investigators as well as payload developers, integrators and trainers.
Dr. Whitson's Science Officer duties continued when she returned to Earth for those experiments conducted during Expedition Five. Her post-flight responsibilities included participation in debriefings and active collaboration with the analysis of experimental observations. Dr. Whitson also communicated to the public her experiences as a researcher in space.
Copyright Richard West 2004. Page updated 23 October 2011.