Nancy Jane Currie-Gregg (née Decker; former married names Sherlock and Currie; born December 29, 1958) is an American

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the lim ...

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

officer and a NASA

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally ...

. Currie-Gregg has served in the United States Army for over 22 years and holds the rank of colonel. With NASA, she has participated in four space shuttle missions: STS-57, STS-70, STS-88, and STS-109, accruing 1,000 hours in space. She currently holds an appointment as a professor of practice in the Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering at

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M Unive ...

Background

Currie-Gregg was born Nancy Jane Decker in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

, on December 29, 1958. Her family moved to

Troy, Ohio Troy is a city in and the county seat of Miami County, Ohio, United States, located north of Dayton. The population was 26,305 at the 2020 census, making it the largest city in Miami County and the 55th largest city in Ohio; it is part of the Da ...

when she was young, and she considers Troy to be her hometown. She graduated from Troy High School in 1977 and then received a Bachelor of Arts degree, with honors, in

biological science Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...

from

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

in 1980, a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree in

safety engineering Safety engineering is an engineering discipline which assures that engineered systems provide acceptable levels of safety. It is strongly related to industrial engineering/systems engineering, and the subset system safety engineering. Safety eng ...

from the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

in 1985, and a

Doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

industrial engineering Industrial engineering is an engineering profession that is concerned with the optimization of complex processes, systems, or organizations by developing, improving and implementing integrated systems of people, money, knowledge, information an ...

from the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...

in 1997. Currie-Gregg is a member of the Army Aviation Association of America, Ohio State University and

ROTC The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...

Alumni Alumni (singular: alumnus (masculine) or alumna (feminine)) are former students of a school, college, or university who have either attended or graduated in some fashion from the institution. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for grou ...

Associations,

Institute of Industrial Engineers The Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE), formerly the Institute of Industrial Engineers, is a professional society dedicated solely to the support of the industrial engineering profession and individuals involved with improving ...

, and

Human Factors and Ergonomics Society The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) is an interdisciplinary nonprofit professional organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, covering the fields of human factors and ergonomics. Founded in 1957, HFES claims 4500 m ...

Association of Space Explorers The Association of Space Explorers is a non-profit organization with a membership composed of people who have completed at least one Earth orbit in space (above , as defined by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. It was founded in 1985, ...

. She is an associate fellow of the

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is a professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA is the U.S. representative on the International Astronautical Federation and the International Council of ...

Military career

Currie-Gregg has served in the

for over 23 years. Prior to her assignment at NASA in 1987, she attended initial

rotary-wing A rotorcraft or rotary-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft with rotary wings or rotor blades, which generate lift by rotating around a vertical mast. Several rotor blades mounted on a single mast are referred to as a rotor. The Internat ...

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they ar ...

training and was subsequently assigned as an instructor pilot at the U.S. Army Aviation School. She has served in a variety of leadership positions including section leader,

platoon leader {{unreferenced, date=February 2013 A platoon leader (NATO) or platoon commander (more common in Commonwealth militaries and the US Marine Corps) is the officer in charge of a platoon. This person is usually a junior officer – a second or first ...

, and brigade flight-standardization officer. As a Master Army Aviator she has logged over 3,900 flying hours in a variety of rotary-wing and

fixed-wing A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air flying machine, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using wings that generate lift caused by the aircraft's forward airspeed and the shape of the wings. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinc ...

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines. ...

Astronaut career

Currie-Gregg was assigned to NASA

Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight control are conducted. It was renamed in honor of the late ...

in September 1987 as a flight simulation engineer on the

Shuttle Training Aircraft The Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA) was a NASA training vehicle that duplicated the Space Shuttle's approach profile and handling qualities, allowing Space Shuttle pilots to simulate Shuttle landings under controlled conditions before attemptin ...

, a complex airborne simulator which models flight characteristics of the Shuttle orbiter. An

since 1990, she has been involved in

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may b ...

ic hardware and procedure development for the shuttle and

space station A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time, and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station is ...

and has worked as a spacecraft communicator. Dr. Currie-Gregg has also served as the chief of the Astronaut Office Robotics and Payloads-Habitability branches and the Habitability and Human Factors Office in JSC's Space and Life Sciences Directorate. She has assisted the Johnson Space Center's

Automation Automation describes a wide range of technologies that reduce human intervention in processes, namely by predetermining decision criteria, subprocess relationships, and related actions, as well as embodying those predeterminations in machines ...

, Robotics, and Simulation Division in the development of advanced robotics systems and is a consultant to NASA's Space Human Factors Engineering Project. A veteran of four

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program nam ...

missions, she has accrued 1,000 hours in space. She flew as mission specialist –

flight engineer A flight engineer (FE), also sometimes called an air engineer, is the member of an aircraft's flight crew who monitors and operates its complex aircraft systems. In the early era of aviation, the position was sometimes referred to as the "air m ...

, on

STS-57 STS-57 was a NASA Space Shuttle-Spacehab mission of that launched 21 June 1993 from Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Crew Spacewalk * '' Low and Wisoff '' – EVA 1 * EVA 1 Start: 25 June 1993 * EVA 1 End: 25 June 1993 * Duration: 5 hours ...

(1993),

STS-70 STS-70 was the 21st flight of the Space Shuttle ''Discovery'', and the last of 7 shuttle missions to carry a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS). This was the first shuttle mission controlled from the new mission control center room at the ...

(1995),

STS-88 STS-88 was the first Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS). It was flown by Space Shuttle ''Endeavour'', and took the first American module, the ''Unity'' node, to the station. The seven-day mission was highlighted by ...

(1998; the first

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA ( ...

assembly mission), and

STS-109 STS-109 (SM3B) was a Space Shuttle mission that launched from the Kennedy Space Center on 1 March 2002. It was the 108th mission of the Space Shuttle program, the 27th flight of the orbiter '' Columbia'' and the fourth servicing of the Hubble Spa ...

(2002).

STS-57

''Endeavour'' (June 21 to July 1, 1993). The primary objective of this mission was the retrieval of the European Retrievable Carrier

satellite A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotop ...

(EURECA). Additionally, this mission featured the first flight of Spacehab, a commercially provided middeck augmentation module for the conduct of

microgravity The term micro-g environment (also μg, often referred to by the term microgravity) is more or less synonymous with the terms ''weightlessness'' and ''zero-g'', but emphasising that g-forces are never exactly zero—just very small (on the I ...

experiments, as well as a

spacewalk Extravehicular activity (EVA) is any activity done by an astronaut in outer space outside a spacecraft. In the absence of a breathable atmosphere of Earth, Earthlike atmosphere, the astronaut is completely reliant on a space suit for environmen ...

by two crewmembers, during which Dr. Currie-Gregg operated the Shuttle's robotic arm. Spacehab carried 22 individual flight experiments in materials and life sciences research. STS-57 orbited the Earth 155 times and covered over 4.1 million miles in over 239 hours and 45 minutes.

STS-70

''Discovery'' (July 13–22, 1995). The five-member crew deployed the final NASA Tracking and Data Relay Satellite to complete the constellation of NASA's orbiting communication satellite system. Dr. Currie-Gregg also conducted a

myriad A myriad (from Ancient Greek grc, μυριάς, translit=myrias, label=none) is technically the number 10,000 (ten thousand); in that sense, the term is used in English almost exclusively for literal translations from Greek, Latin or Sinosphe ...

biomedical Biomedicine (also referred to as Western medicine, mainstream medicine or conventional medicine)

and remote sensing experiments. STS-70 orbited the Earth 143 times and covered over 3.7 million miles in over 214 hours and 20 minutes.

STS-88

''Endeavour'' (December 4–15, 1998). STS-88, ISS Flight 2A was the first International Space Station assembly mission. The primary objective of this 12-day mission was to mate the first American-made module, Unity, to the first Russian-made module, Zarya. Dr. Currie-Gregg's primary role was to operate the Shuttle's 50-foot robotic arm to retrieve Zarya and connect the first two station segments. Two crewmembers performed a series of three spacewalks to connect electrical umbilicals and to attach hardware to the exterior structure for use during future EVAs. Dr. Currie-Gregg also operated the robot arm during the spacewalks. During the mission, the STS-88 crew ingressed the International Space Station to complete systems activation and installation of communication's equipment. The crew also deployed two small satellites. STS-88 completed 185 orbits of the Earth and covered over 4.7 million miles in 283 hours and 18 minutes.

STS-109

''Columbia'' (March 1–12, 2002). STS-109 was the fourth mission to service the

Hubble Space Telescope The Hubble Space Telescope (often referred to as HST or Hubble) is a space telescope that was launched into low Earth orbit in 1990 and remains in operation. It was not the first space telescope, but it is one of the largest and most versa ...

. During the flight, Dr. Currie-Gregg's primary role was to operate the Shuttle's 50-foot robot arm to retrieve and redeploy the

telescope A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, absorption, or reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally meaning only an optical instrument using lenses, curved mirrors, or a combination of both to observ ...

following the completion of numerous upgrades and repairs. She also operated the robot arm during a series of five consecutive spacewalks performed by four crewmembers. Hubble's scientific capabilities and power system were significantly upgraded with the replacement of both solar arrays and the primary power control unit, the installation of the Advanced Camera for Surveys, and a scientific instrument cooling system. The Hubble Space Telescope was then boosted to a higher orbit and redeployed to continue its mission of providing views of the universe which are unmatched by ground-based telescopes or other satellites. STS-109 completed 165 earth orbits and covered over 3.9 million miles in over 262 hours.

Later life

In September 2003, after the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster, Currie-Gregg was selected to lead the Space Shuttle Program's Safety and Mission Assurance Office. She also served as the Senior Technical Advisor to the Automation, Robotics, and Simulation Division in the

Engineering Directorate, NESC Chief Engineer at Johnson Space Center, and Principal Engineer in the NASA Engineering and Safety Center. Currie-Gregg previously held an appointment as adjunct associate professor in

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

's Department of Industrial Engineering. She is currently a professor of practice in the Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering at

. Currie-Gregg developed a finite element human vibration model for use in spacecraft coupled loads analysis.

Personal life

Currie-Gregg has been married three times and has a child from her first marriage. Her second husband, retired Army aviator and

United Space Alliance :''In this article, USA refers to the United Space Alliance, not the United States.'' United Space Alliance (USA) was a spaceflight operations company. USA was a joint venture which was established in August 1995 as a Limited Liability Company ...

employee CW5 David Currie, died in 2011 from renal cancer.

Awards and honors

* Arts and Sciences Award for Scholarship, Ohio State University (1980) * Distinguished Graduate of the Army Air Defense Artillery Officer Basic Course (1981) * Honor Graduate of the Army Rotary Wing Aviator Course (1982) * Honor Graduate of the Army Aviation Officer Advanced Course (1986) *

Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...

s (2) *

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

Defense Meritorious Service Medal The Defense Meritorious Service Medal (DMSM) is an award bestowed upon members of the United States military by the United States Department of Defense. In the order of precedence of the United States Armed Forces, it is worn between the Purple ...

National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It is awarded to every member of the US Armed Forces who has served during any one of four ...

Army Service Ribbon The Army Service Ribbon (ASR) is a military award of the United States Army that was established by the Secretary of the Army on 10 April 1981 as announced in Department of the Army General Order 15, dated 10 October 1990. History Effective 1 A ...

NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal The NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal is awarded to US government employees only for notably outstanding leadership which affects technical or administrative programs of NASA. The leadership award may be given for an act of leadership, for sustain ...

(2005) *

NASA Exceptional Service Medal The NASA Exceptional Service Medal is an award granted to U.S. government employees for significant sustained performance characterized by unusual initiative or creative ability that clearly demonstrates substantial improvement in engineering, ae ...

(1998, 2012) * NASA Flight Simulation Engineering Award (1988) *

NASA Space Flight Medal The NASA Space Flight Medal is a decoration of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. According to its statutes, it is awarded "for significant achievement or service during individual participation as a civilian or military astrona ...

s (4) *

Silver Snoopy award The Silver Snoopy award is a special honor awarded to NASA employees and contractors for outstanding achievements related to human flight safety or mission success. The award certificate states that it is "In Appreciation" "For professionalism, ...

* Ohio Veteran's Hall of Fame (1994) * Troy, Ohio Hall of Fame (1996) * Ohio State University Army ROTC Hall of Fame (1996) * Silver Order of St. Michael, Army Aviation Award (1997).

References

External links

Biography of Nancy J. Currie-Gregg
at Spacefacts.de
NASA biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Currie-Gregg, Nancy J. 1958 births Living people Women astronauts United States Army astronauts People from Wilmington, Delaware People from Troy, Ohio Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences alumni USC Viterbi School of Engineering alumni University of Houston alumni North Carolina State University faculty United States Army officers American women engineers Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal Women in the United States Army Engineers from Ohio 21st-century women engineers Space Shuttle program astronauts American women academics 21st-century American women