Theron Bradley, Jr. to retire November 1 after long and
distinguished career
NASA's Chief Engineer
Theron Bradley, Jr., today announced his plan to retire, effective
Nov. 1, 2004. Administrator O'Keefe appointed Bradley in June 2002,
where he was responsible for the overall review and technical
readiness of all NASA programs.
"Theron has been a leader in NASA's engineering and safety
assessment community. He has been a driving force helping the
agency safely return to flight as we implement the Vision for Space
Exploration," said Administrator O'Keefe. "He reinvigorated the
role of the position of chief engineer at NASA, and I will miss his
friendship, sound advice and counsel."
As Chief Engineer, Bradley established and implemented agency
policy concerning program and project management. Reporting
directly to the Administrator, Bradley drew on his vast experience
in the U.S. Navy nuclear reactor community to help ensure
development efforts and mission operations were planned and
conducted on a sound engineering basis.
He helped provide focus and established agency-wide engineering
policies, standards and practices. He was responsible for
establishing and directing agency policy with regard to all
engineering and related technical work, including providing advice
and recommendations on engineering matters to senior agency
managers across NASA. Bradley served as the Executive Secretary of
the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB). He has been a
driving force managing NASA's implementation of the CAIB's
engineering and safety assessment recommendations, so critical for
Return to Flight. He was also chairman of the CONTOUR spacecraft
Mishap Investigation Board. He served as the Chairman of the NASA
Inventions and Contributions Board, and participated in leadership
positions for various other NASA Boards and Councils.
Prior to joining NASA,
Bradley was a senior civilian manager and nuclear engineer with the
Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, a joint activity of the
Departments of Energy and Navy. He served from 1982 to 2002 as
Manager of the Naval Reactors Idaho Branch Office. He directed and
managed a 3000- employee facility that included four operational
nuclear reactors and a state of the art material research and
development activity.
Prior to 1982, Bradley held several senior positions within the
Naval Reactors Headquarters organization. He served as Director,
Submarine Systems, for the Trident submarine program. He was
instrumental in the initial design of the nuclear propulsion plant
for Nimitz class aircraft carriers and the advanced reactor design
for Los Angeles class submarines. Bradley also directed technology
research and development in the thermal/hydraulic, shock,
vibration, noise, and structural mechanics areas.
He holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Physics and Mathematics
from Oregon State University. He completed Masters postgraduate
work in Nuclear Engineering from Bettis Reactor Engineering School,
and he has a law degree from LaSalle Extension University. He
completed postgraduate work in Physics at the University of
Idaho.
Bradley is a registered Professional Engineer in Nuclear
Engineering and Mechanical Engineering in Idaho and Virginia. He is
a member of the American Nuclear Society and the American Institute
of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He is also one of the first
recipients of the National Nuclear Security Administration's Gold
Award for consistently providing outstanding leadership and
accomplishing a sustained level of exceptional achievement over an
extended period.