Dana Weigel will become the International Space Station's new program manager, NASA announced Monday. She will succeed Joel Montalbano, who has been promoted to deputy associate administrator for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. Photos courtesy of NASA
Feb. 26 (UPI) -- NASA has named two new leaders at the space agency who will chart the future of the International Space Station and establish a low-Earth orbit economy.
Dana Weigel will become the space station's new program manager on April 7 and will be based at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, the space agency announced Monday. Weigel has served as NASA's deputy program manager for the International Space Station since 2021 and has worked with NASA in various positions for the past 20 years.
"Dana's depth of expertise and International Space Station Program experience will be instrumental as we continue to explore low Earth orbit for the benefit of all humanity," said Johnson Center Director Vanessa Wyche.
Weigel will succeed Joel Montalbano, who has been promoted to deputy associate administrator for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C.
"On behalf of NASA Johnson, we are proud of Joel's contributions and dedication to mission excellence and look forward to his accomplishments as Space Operations Mission Directorate's deputy associate administrator," Wyche added.
As Montalbano leaves his position as International Space Station Program manager, which he has occupied since 2020, he will work to maintain U.S. leadership in space by targeting the nation's goals of establishing a low-Earth orbit economy.
Montalbano was NASA's International Space Station deputy program manager, starting in 2012. He has served NASA since 1998 in a number of roles and was a NASA flight director from 2000 to 2008.
"With Dana continuing her contributions to space station, Joel will bring his experience to the Space Operations directorate," said Ken Bowersox, NASA's associate administrator for space operations.
"NASA will continue to benefit from their human spaceflight knowledge as we maintain our unique capabilities in orbit and prepare for the future of the agency's operations in space."
