NASA engineer and astronaut Christina Koch will serve as the agency’s acting deputy chief engineer beginning Sunday 1 November, following the retirement of Katherine Van Hooser, who will conclude more than 35 years of service to the agency on Wednesday 21 October.

In her new role, Koch will help lead NASA’s engineering community, supporting technical oversight, mission readiness and engineering excellence across the agency’s programmes and projects. With the appointment, Koch will transition to management astronaut status and will no longer be eligible for future spaceflight assignments.

“Christina has seen NASA engineering from both sides of the equation: developing complex systems on the ground and trusting them with her life in space,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “After spending nearly a year living and working aboard the International Space Station and helping lead America back around the Moon on Artemis II this year, she brings an extraordinary combination of technical expertise, operational experience, and judgment to this role. I am excited to see the impact she will have across NASA as we return Americans to the lunar surface, build the Moon Base, get underway on nuclear power in space, and develop the capabilities that will ultimately take us on to Mars.”

“Katherine has been an extraordinary leader throughout her career, bringing technical expertise, sound judgment, and an unwavering commitment to mission success to some of NASA’s most complex engineering challenges,” said Amit Kshatriya, NASA associate administrator and chief engineer. “Her leadership has strengthened our engineering community and helped guide the agency through critical milestones and transitions. Christina brings a unique combination of engineering expertise, operational experience, and proven leadership, both on the ground and in space. I am grateful to Katherine for her exceptional service and confident Christina will continue the tradition of technical excellence that is essential to everything we do at NASA.”

KOCH’S RECORD ABOARD THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

Koch most recently served as a mission specialist aboard NASA’s Artemis II mission in April, helping carry out the first crewed flight around the Moon in more than 50 years. She previously spent 328 consecutive days aboard the International Space Station, setting the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman and taking part in the first all-female spacewalks.

Koch began her NASA career as an electrical engineer at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, developing scientific instruments for space missions. Before her selection as an astronaut in 2013, her experience also included scientific field engineering in Antarctica and the Arctic. She has since held leadership positions within NASA’s Astronaut Office and at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

VAN HOOSER’S 35 YEARS IN PROPULSION ENGINEERING

Van Hooser joined NASA in 1991 at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, beginning a career in propulsion engineering and technical leadership. Her early work focused on liquid rocket engine turbomachinery before she became chief engineer for the space shuttle main engine, leading engineering efforts through the programme’s final 21 flights. She later served as the first chief engineer for the Space Launch System’s Liquid Engines Element, and has been NASA’s deputy chief engineer since 2023.