Glenn E. Cunningham, manager of NASA's Mars Surveyor Operations Project at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, has been named deputy director of JPL's Mars Exploration Directorate. He is succeeded by Richard Cook, who served as flight operations manager for 1997's Mars Pathfinder lander and rover mission.
In his newly created position, Cunningham will oversee the implementation and operations of all of the Mars missions currently under way or planned through 2013. Those missions include the currently orbiting Mars Global Surveyor and the recently launched Mars Climate Orbiter and Mars Polar Lander, as well as the upcoming 2001 Mars Surveyor orbiter, lander and rover mission, and the first sample return missions scheduled for launches in 2003 and 2005.
Cunningham's successor, Richard Cook, will assume the hands-on role of daily management of flight operations for missions, including the three spacecraft currently en route to or in orbit around Mars. His responsibilities include activities such as orchestrating spacecraft tracking, telecommunications operations and data collection among multiple spacecraft that will be conducting their primary science missions concurrently. Cook will also manage flight operations planning for future Mars missions, including the 2001 Mars mission and the 2003 and 2005 Mars sample return missions.
Cunningham served as project manager for the development of Mars Global Surveyor before the flight operations of all upcoming Mars missions were consolidated under the umbrella of a new organization called the Mars Surveyor Operations Project. Before that position, he served as manager of the Mars Observer mission during its flight phase in 1992-1993.
He joined the Laboratory in 1966 as a systems engineer in the former Spacecraft System Design & Integration Section and worked on a variety of spacecraft missions, including the 1969 Mariner mission to Mars. In 1978, he was named spacecraft team chief of the Voyager mission to the outer planets, and served through the twin Voyager spacecraft's encounters with Jupiter in March and July 1979. He also led several pilot studies of robotic precursor missions to support eventual human exploration of Mars. In 1990, he joined the Mars Observer project as deputy manager.
Cunningham earned his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1966 from the University of California at Berkeley, and holds professional memberships in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).
He has completed several management certification programs, including Claremont Graduate School's Advanced Management Program, the NASA System Engineering Program, the NASA Senior Executive Program and the NASA Advanced Project Management Program.
A recipient of two NASA Outstanding Leadership Medals for his work on Voyager and Mars Global Surveyor, Cunningham lives in La Canada-Flintridge, CA.
Prior to his new appointment, Cook served as flight operations manager responsible for the daily operations of the Mars Pathfinder lander and rover.
Joining JPL in 1989, Cook worked on the Magellan mission to Venus and helped plan concepts for projects to Mars and the Moon before joining the Mars Pathfinder project in 1992 as a mission designer.
A resident of San Gabriel, CA, Cook earned a bachelor's degree in engineering physics in 1987 from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a master of science degree in aerospace engineering in 1989 from the University of Texas, Austin. He is the recipient of a NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal for his work on Mars Pathfinder.
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