Jon N. Cowart | A Retrospective on the Future of Space Exploration

A world-class rocket scientist by every definition, Jon Cowart has been a longstanding member of the NASA space exploration team, working on highly visible and engaging projects including the Space Shuttle, the International Space Station, and SpaceX. Jon shares his unique perspective on space travel, anticipating the future of technology and space exploration by looking back at what’s been accomplished and where we’ve been.

Jon Cowart has 37 years of experience as an engineer and project manager in the field of human spaceflight. He is currently Systems Director for all Aerospace Corporation personnel supporting NASA’s Commercial Crew, Human Landing System, Space Launch System, and Gateway Logistics at Kennedy Space Center. Formerly, he was the Deputy Manager of the Mission Management office in NASA's Commercial Crew Program after NASA’s Mission Manager for the SpaceX Demonstration Mission 2.

Cowart has led technical teams of hundreds of personnel as mission manager for Node 1 "Unity" and the US Laboratory Module "Destiny", as Deputy Mission Manager for Ares I-X (the only successful launch of the Constellation Program). His personal objective is to promote and assure the success of all space exploration endeavors and get humanity to Mars as soon as possible. Humanity's greatest accomplishments in space exploration are still to come.