Dr. Fred Hadaegh, Chief Technologist

Dr. Fred Hadaegh was appointed JPL’s Chief Technologist on November 1, 2016. Previously he spent four years as JPL’s Associate Chief Technologist.

Hadaegh joined JPL in 1984 after receiving his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California. For two decades he supervised the Guidance and Control (G&C) Analysis Group, which is responsible for leading research in guidance, estimation, and control theory and developing algorithms and software for planetary science and astrophysics missions. He also previously led the development of G&C technologies for spacecraft formation flying, autonomous rendezvous, and docking for NASA missions and Department of Defense programs.

Hadaegh is a JPL Fellow, Senior Research Scientist, and a Principal Engineer. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers (IEEE) and Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). He has received numerous awards including NASA’s Exceptional Service and Exceptional Achievement Medals, and JPL’s Award of Excellence for “Flight Validation of Autonomous Rendezvous in Earth Orbit.” His research interests include optimal estimation and control as applied to distributed spacecraft. He has published extensively on mathematical modeling of uncertain systems, parameter identifiability of dynamical systems, identification and control of large space structures, and autonomous control of distributed spacecraft systems.