NCSSM Class of 1997 alum Christina Hammock Koch is transitioning to a new leadership role at NASA which will put her at the leading edge of furthering NASA’s overall ambitions to go to the moon and beyond, but end her days of riding rockets into space.

In a press release dated October 13, NASA announced that on November 1, Koch will become the agency’s newest acting deputy chief engineer following the retirement of its current deputy chief engineer. In this new role, Koch will utilize her engineering and space exploration experience to provide technical oversight and support mission readiness across a wide range of NASA programs and projects.

Koch stands as the most accomplished female astronaut in NASA’s storied history of space exploration. In 2019-2020, she spent 328 continuous days in space aboard the International Space Station, making her the owner of the longest spaceflight by a woman. During this record-setting orbit of Earth, she also became one-half of the world’s first, second, and third all-female spacewalks.

Subsequent to her ISS mission, Koch joined the Artemis II mission which earlier this year sent a crew of four on a flight around the moon. It was NASA’s first crewed return to the moon’s vicinity in more than 50 years. The mission made Koch the first woman to ever circle the moon, and marked the furthest that humans have ever travelled from Earth.

NCSSM is incredibly proud of Koch’s historic accomplishments, but even more proud of the way she has represented NCSSM, her college alma mater North Carolina State University, the state of North Carolina, and the people of the United States. We thank her for the inspiration she has provided the world, and the joy she has brought to the lives of so many. Though she has parked her rocket ship, we know that her leadership will help current and future generations reach heights yet to be dreamed.

---