George T. Whitesides
Encyclopedia
George Thomas Whitesides is CEO and President of Virgin Galactic
, a firm developing commercial space vehicles. He was previously Chief of Staff of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, a position to which he was named after serving on the NASA transition team for the incoming Obama Administration.
From 2004 to 2008, Whitesides served as the Executive Director of the National Space Society
. He is the co-creator of Yuri's Night
.
He has served as Senior Advisor to Virgin Galactic
, Richard Branson
's space tourism company.
Whitesides was the Chairman of the Reusable Launch Vehicle Working Group of COMSTAC
, the advisory committee for the FAA's Commercial Space Transportation Division. He was a board member of Astronomers Without Borders and the Space Generation Foundation.
He has served as a coach for Zero Gravity Corporation
's parabolic flight service.
, a professor of chemistry at Harvard University
. His brother is the lead singer of The Joggers
, a Portland, Oregon-based band.
George attended Princeton University
, graduating from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. He served for four years on Princeton's Board of Trustees upon graduation. He has an MPhil in Geographical Information Systems and Remote Sensing from Cambridge University, where he was a member of King's College. He was Fulbright Scholar in Tunisia.
Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic is a company within Richard Branson's Virgin Group which plans to provide sub-orbital spaceflights to the paying public, along with suborbital space science missions and orbital launches of small satellites...
, a firm developing commercial space vehicles. He was previously Chief of Staff of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, a position to which he was named after serving on the NASA transition team for the incoming Obama Administration.
From 2004 to 2008, Whitesides served as the Executive Director of the National Space Society
National Space Society
The National Space Society is an international nonprofit 501, educational, and scientific organization specializing in space advocacy...
. He is the co-creator of Yuri's Night
Yuri's Night
Yuri's Night is an international celebration held on April 12 every year to commemorate space exploration milestones. The event is named for the first human to launch into space, Yuri Gagarin, who flew the Vostok 1 spaceship on April 12, 1961. In 2004, people celebrated Yuri's Night in 34...
.
He has served as Senior Advisor to Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic is a company within Richard Branson's Virgin Group which plans to provide sub-orbital spaceflights to the paying public, along with suborbital space science missions and orbital launches of small satellites...
, Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin Group of more than 400 companies....
's space tourism company.
Whitesides was the Chairman of the Reusable Launch Vehicle Working Group of COMSTAC
COMSTAC
The Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee is an advisory board within the US Federal Aviation Administration . COMSTAC was established in 1984 and provides information, advice, and recommendations to the FAA administrator within the Department of Transportation on issues regarding...
, the advisory committee for the FAA's Commercial Space Transportation Division. He was a board member of Astronomers Without Borders and the Space Generation Foundation.
He has served as a coach for Zero Gravity Corporation
Zero Gravity Corporation
Zero Gravity Corporation is an American company based in Vienna, Virginia, formerly of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which operates weightless flights from United States airports...
's parabolic flight service.
Personal
George is married to Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides, and they plan to be the first couple to honeymoon in space. His father is George M. WhitesidesGeorge M. Whitesides
George M. Whitesides is an American chemist and professor of chemistry at Harvard University. He is best known for his work in the areas of NMR spectroscopy, organometallic chemistry, molecular self-assembly, soft lithography, microfabrication, microfluidics, and nanotechnology...
, a professor of chemistry at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. His brother is the lead singer of The Joggers
The Joggers
The Joggers, formerly known as Stateside, are a four-piece band from Portland, Oregon. They play complex songs with elements of math rock which retain a pop sensibility. The guitar style of Ben Whitesides and the second guitarist rejects a traditional rhythm & lead style for more scale exploration...
, a Portland, Oregon-based band.
George attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, graduating from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. He served for four years on Princeton's Board of Trustees upon graduation. He has an MPhil in Geographical Information Systems and Remote Sensing from Cambridge University, where he was a member of King's College. He was Fulbright Scholar in Tunisia.