2005 Stellar Awards Winners
The 2005 RNASA Stellar Award winners in each of four categories were announced at the banquet on April 22, 2005 at the Houston Hyatt Regency hotel.
The 2005 Stellar Evaluators were former National Space Trophy winners Dr. Aaron Cohen, Dr. Chris Kraft Jr., and Dr. Glynn Lunney.
Early Career Category Winners
5 winners
2005 Stellar Awards Winner in Early Career Category. L to R: Astronaut Mike Fincke (presenting), wife and to-be-identified winner, 2nd Lt. Eric Hanson, to-be-identified winner, Holly Ridings, to-be-identified winner, and Astronaut Janet Kavandi (presenting). (NASA)
Jeffrey D. Donoughue of The Boeing Company - Outstanding leadership of the ISS electrical power system mission operations, and dedication to mentoring team members to ensure continuing effectiveness in supporting the on-orbit system.
Michael S. Etchells of Science Applications International Corporation - Exceptional commitment to technical excellence and vigilance in assuring that the shuttle remote manipulator system is safe, reliable and ready to meet operational demands.
James A. Furfaro of ATK Thiokol Inc. - Exceptional innovation and dedication in developing the solid rocket motor industry's first-ever direct measurement of propellant erosive burning characteristics, key in analyzing and testing the world's largest segmented solid rocket motor, ETM-3.
2Lt. Eric J. Hansen of the United States Air Force Research Laboratory - Leading the development of the miniaturized vibration isolation system to provide a stable platform for precision space imagery and communications applications.
Holly E. Ridings of NASA Johnson Space Center - Exceptional level of leadership, professional responsibility, and technical expertise of the International Space Station Motion Control System Flight Control Group.
Middle Career Category Winners
8 winners
2005 Stellar Awards Winners in Middle Career Category. Pictured with astronauts Mike Fincke and Janet Kavandi on either side. (NASA)
Charles L. Bennett of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center - Definitive measurement of the structure of the Big Bang, through mapping the cosmic microwave background radiation to unprecedented sensitivity and accuracy.
Kim K. de Groh of NASA Glenn Research Center - Outstanding contributions to the understanding and enhancement of spacecraft materials durability, as well as exceptional mentoring and outreach efforts.
Donald W. Holder of NASA Marshall Space Flight Center - Outstanding technical leadership in development of the regenerative environmental control and life support air and water systems for the International Space Station, and personal dedication in resolving technical flight hardware issues.
Rick L. Howerton of The Boeing Company, Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power - Outstanding contributions to the revitalization of space nuclear power in the United States.
Larry Isom of Hamilton Sundstrand - Visionary leadership in developing technologies and processes for titanium satellite propellant tanks.
Jon M. Kirschenbaum of Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company - Extraordinary technical excellence in the development and operation of the Gravity Probe B space vehicle attitude and translation control system.
Pamela L. Madera of United Space Alliance - Outstanding leadership in solving complex aerodynamic; thermal; structural; and guidance, navigation, and control problems; and providing solid rationale for safe human space flight.
Brian Y. Nakasone of The Boeing Company, Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power - Technical excellence in developing process improvements and enhancements to flight safety for the Space Shuttle main engines.
Late Career Category
6 winners
2005 Stellar Awards Winners in Late Career Category. Pictured with astronauts Mike Fincke and Janet Kavandi on either side. (NASA)
Johnny G. Armstrong of the United States Air Force - Outstanding leadership that significantly contributed to the reinvigoration of Air Force participation in hypersonic technology development and test programs that help our nation break through a technology barrier to achieve highly reliable, highly reusable, less costly, and routine access to space.
Harold F. Battaglia The Boeing Company - Outstanding investigation, analysis, and resolution of multi-discipline engineering and technical issues to ensure continuing excellent International Space Station performance on orbit.
Douglas P. Bradley of The Boeing Company, Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power - Outstanding achievements and accomplishments in the areas of design, test and continued safe flight of the Space Shuttle and the Space Shuttle main engines and for contributions in the advancement of America's space program.
James R. Eyman of United Space Alliance - Outstanding leadership and management of critical design, development, production, and operations for NASA's Space Shuttle program, with a key focus on safety.
Victor Jorgensen of ATK Thiokol Inc. - Lifetime achievement for twenty-five years of exceptional creativity, vision, innovation, and dedication in the development, fabrication and implementation of numerous tooling and technological improvements in support of high-quality reusable solid rocket motors for the Space Shuttle program.
Raymond C. Krise of The Boeing Company, Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power - Dedicated, exemplary support to the Atlas Expendable Launch Vehicle Program by providing technical direction to Rocketdyne's Atlas engines for 25 years.
Team Category
7 winners
2005 Stellar Awards Winners in Team Category. Pictured with astronauts Mike Fincke and Janet Kavandi on either side. (NASA)
Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer Satellite (CHIPSat) Spacecraft Team of SpaceDev - Successful implementation of the innovative CHIPSat microsatellite that has operated successfully on orbit for over two years with an instrument observing duty cycle greater than 98%. Jeff Janicik accepted the award on behalf of the team.
ISS Systems Integration Laboratory (ISIL) Completion Team of The Boeing Company - Successful planning and execution of the ISIL completion laboratory improvements providing a high fidelity, ground-based, test capability for the duration of the ISS program. Debbie Sharp accepted the award on behalf of the team.
Mars Drill Team of NASA Johnson Space Center - Outstanding innovation and technical excellence in developing and demonstrating the Prototype Mars Drill, and using the talents of Houston's 'Oil Patch' and space industries to pioneer unique technology for future human exploration. Jeff George accepted the award on behalf of the team.
Mars Exploration Rover Team of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory - Successfully landing twin robotic spacecraft on Mars and subsequently conducting world class scientific exploration at two distinct sites. Jim Erickson accepted the award on behalf of the team.
Orbiter Boom Sensor System Project of NASA Johnson Space Center - Development, design, and certification of an inspection system for Space Shuttle crews to use in the detection of critical damage to the orbiter. Kim Ess accepted the award on behalf of the team.
Reinforced Carbon-Carbon Repair Team of ATK Thiokol Inc. - Relentless dedication and exceptional innovation in the development of an on-orbit reinforced carbon-carbon wing leading edge repair capability for the Space Shuttle orbiter. Dean Lester accepted the award on behalf of the team.
Reusable Solid Rocket Motor (RSRM) Chemical Fingerprinting Program of ATK Thiokol Inc. - Outstanding vision, dedication, professionalism, and technical excellence in developing the RSRM chemical fingerprinting program established to detect and understand subtle raw material variations. Dr. Dennis Fife accepted the award on behalf of the team.
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