HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Jay Henry Greene (May 17, 1942 – October 8, 2017) was a
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...
. Between 2000 and 2004, he served as Chief Engineer at
Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight in Houston, Texas (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight controller, flight control are conducted. ...
, where his role consisted primarily of advising the Center Director. He worked as a FIDO flight controller during the
Apollo Program The Apollo program, also known as Project Apollo, was the United States human spaceflight program led by NASA, which Moon landing, landed the first humans on the Moon in 1969. Apollo followed Project Mercury that put the first Americans in sp ...
and a flight director from 1982 to 1986, and as ascent flight director during the 1986 Space Shuttle ''Challenger'' disaster. Greene worked for four years as a manager on the
International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...
project and received several awards for his work including the
NASA Distinguished Service Medal The NASA Distinguished Service Medal is the highest award that can be bestowed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States. The medal may be presented to any member of the federal government, including both milita ...
. After his retirement in 2004 he served as a part-time consultant on the Exploration Systems Architecture Study. NASA Associate Administrator Rex Geveden described him as "a famous technical curmudgeon in the Agency".


Early life

Greene grew up in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
and graduated from Brooklyn Polytechnic in 1964 with a
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
degree in
electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
.His first job was at
North American Aviation North American Aviation (NAA) was a major American aerospace manufacturer that designed and built several notable aircraft and spacecraft. Its products included the T-6 Texan trainer, the P-51 Mustang fighter, the B-25 Mitchell bomber, the F- ...
in
Downey, California Downey is a city located in Southeast Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. It is considered part of the Gateway Cities. The city is the birthplace of the Apollo space program and Taco Bell. It is ...
, but he did not find the work particularly satisfying. Less than a year later, he accepted a job with NASA at the Manned Spacecraft Center (later named the
Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight in Houston, Texas (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight controller, flight control are conducted. ...
) in
Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
. Greene was
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
.


Apollo program

Despite the fact that his degree was in electrical engineering, Greene was assigned to the flight dynamics branch and trained to be a Flight Dynamics Officer (FIDO) for the upcoming Apollo program. His responsibilities in Mission Control would include monitoring the trajectory of the Apollo spacecraft, computing changes in orbit, and plotting course corrections and adjustments. His first shift as a flight controller was during the launch of the unmanned
Apollo 6 Apollo 6 (April 4, 1968), also known as AS-502, was the third and final uncrewed flight in the United States' Apollo Program and the second test of the Saturn V launch vehicle. It qualified the Saturn V for use on crewed missions, and it was us ...
. The launch turned out to be a memorable one, as two engines cut out on the second stage of the Saturn V booster less than five minutes after lift-off. Although the mission was not aborted, it was a challenging launch for the Flight Dynamics officer—the spacecraft diverged from its intended trajectory so severely that Greene was nearly forced to call an abort. In 1969, Greene was chosen to work the descent shift for
Apollo 11 Apollo 11 was a spaceflight conducted from July 16 to 24, 1969, by the United States and launched by NASA. It marked the first time that humans Moon landing, landed on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin l ...
, the first lunar landing. This was a coveted and prestigious assignment, showing the esteem in which he was held by his superiors. Flight Director
Gene Kranz Eugene Francis Kranz (born August 17, 1933) is an American aerospace engineer who served as NASA's second Chief Flight Director, directing missions of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs, including the first lunar landing mission, Apoll ...
, who also worked the descent shift, described Greene as "elite in the ranks of the FIDOs, cocky and crisp with his calls." During the
Apollo 13 Apollo 13 (April 1117, 1970) was the seventh crewed mission in the Apollo program, Apollo space program and would have been the third Moon landing. The craft was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 11, 1970, but the landing was abort ...
crisis, Greene played a lesser role. Unlike many other flight controllers, most notably
Gene Kranz Eugene Francis Kranz (born August 17, 1933) is an American aerospace engineer who served as NASA's second Chief Flight Director, directing missions of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs, including the first lunar landing mission, Apoll ...
, he was not positive about the astronauts' chance of survival. "A lot of them in retrospect will tell you how macho and cool t was" he said in an interview some years later, "but it was pretty grim." Greene later stated that "when they opened up that capsule, I was sure all they would find would be three dead bodies. I honestly didn't see how we could get them home." Greene was a FIDO on
Apollo 6 Apollo 6 (April 4, 1968), also known as AS-502, was the third and final uncrewed flight in the United States' Apollo Program and the second test of the Saturn V launch vehicle. It qualified the Saturn V for use on crewed missions, and it was us ...
through 17, excluding
Apollo 9 Apollo 9 (March 3–13, 1969) was the third human spaceflight in NASA's Apollo program, which successfully tested systems and procedures critical to landing on the Moon. The three-man crew consisted of Commander James McDivitt, Command Modul ...
.


Space Shuttle program

After the Apollo program concluded, Greene spent two years as a Range Safety Coordinator, planning the procedures that would be followed if something went wrong with the trajectory of the
Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, 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. ...
during launch. He fought to keep the Shuttle from being fitted with a range safety destruct system, which would allow it to be destroyed remotely from the ground. However, he was not successful and believed that he was removed from the position as a result of his stand on the issue. Greene remained in the flight dynamics branch until 1982, spending 1976 through 1979 as section head and 1980 through 1982 as branch chief. He was a FIDO on STS-1 and worked his last mission as FIDO in 1981 on
STS-2 STS-2 was the second Space Shuttle mission conducted by NASA, and the second flight of the orbiter Space Shuttle Columbia, ''Columbia''. The mission, crewed by Joe Engle, Joe H. Engle and Richard H. Truly, launched on November 12, 1981, and lan ...
, the second Shuttle launch. By that point, his responsibilities in the flight dynamics branch were largely managerial.J. Greene, oral history, December 8, 2004, JSC OHP. That year, at the request of Johnson Space Center flight operations director George Abbey, he began the process of training to become a flight director. He worked
STS-3 STS-3 was NASA's third Space Shuttle mission, and was the third mission for the Space Shuttle ''Columbia''. It launched on March 22, 1982, and landed eight days later on March 30, 1982. The mission, crewed by Jack R. Lousma and C. Gordon Fu ...
and
STS-4 STS-4 was the fourth NASA Space Shuttle mission, and also the fourth for Space Shuttle ''Columbia''. Crewed by Ken Mattingly and Henry Hartsfield, the mission launched on June 27, 1982, and landed a week later on July 4, 1982. Due to parachut ...
as a backup flight director, learning the job by being paired with the experienced flight director Tommy Holloway and observing him at work. Greene's first mission as flight director in his own right was
STS-6 STS-6 was the sixth NASA Space Shuttle mission and the maiden flight of the . Launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 4, 1983, the mission deployed the first Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-1, into orbit, before landing at Edwards ...
, which launched on April 6, 1983. As a flight director, Greene specialized in the ascent shift, considered to be one of the most demanding and dangerous phases of a mission. He worked on ten flights between 1983 and 1986, including STS-61-C, which was notable for having included Rep.
Bill Nelson Clarence William Nelson II (born September 29, 1942) is an American politician, attorney, and former astronaut who served from 2001 to 2019 as a United States Senate, United States senator from Florida and from 2021 to 2025 as the Administrator ...
(D-FL) as a member of the crew. In his book about the mission, Nelson characterized Greene as a "no-nonsense type of man," "underpaid and overworked," yet dedicated to his job. His tenth and final mission as lead Flight Director was on
STS-51-L STS-51-L was the disastrous 25th mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program and the final flight of Space Shuttle ''Challenger''. It was planned as the first Teacher in Space Project flight in addition to observing Halley's Comet for six day ...
.


''Challenger'' disaster

Greene was not originally assigned to work the STS-51-L mission, which was scheduled to launch a mere ten days after the landing of STS-61-C. Due to staffing issues, he was pulled from STS-61-C and reassigned as ascent flight director for STS-51-L. As flight director, Greene was involved in discussion (although by his own recollection, "not a lot") about concerns with the cold weather and ice on the morning of the launch. These concerns had been worked primarily during the shift preceding his, and their conclusion had been that the freezing weather was not a reason to call off the launch as far as the orbiter was concerned. While he did have the authority to halt the countdown, he chose to report 'GO' to the KSC Launch Director. In the minutes following the loss of ''Challenger'', Greene's responsibilities as flight director centered on ensuring that data from the accident was properly recorded and preserved, and that incident reports were written up. NASA adopted a policy of minimum engagement with the press in the immediate aftermath of the accident. On the following day, the ''New York Times'' noted that "neither Jay Greene, flight director for the ascent, nor any other person in the control room, was made available to the press by the space agency". He did, however, appear at a press conference later that day, where he answered questions about the accident. All the data received at Mission Control up to the time of ''Challengers disintegration appeared normal, he reported, and he was not able to shed light on the accident's cause.


Managerial positions

After ''Challenger'', Jay retired as a flight director. In October 1987, after a short period working with a study group on lunar exploration, he was appointed head of NASA's safety division. The division had been created after the ''Challenger'' accident at the recommendation of the Rogers Commission, which saw its establishment as key in creating a new, more vigorous "safety culture" at NASA. However, Greene feared that too much introspection by NASA engineers could lead to a damaging loss of confidence. In an interview a year later, he said that NASA had been on "a fantastic
guilt trip Guilt tripping is a form of emotional blackmail that is often designed to manipulate other people by preying on their emotions and feelings of guilt or responsibility. This can be a form of toxic behavior that can have detrimental effects on a p ...
," adding that "I believe NASA has been overly eager to defend itself against all critics. Any time you have an independent panel, you ought to be able to name a defense attorney for the status quo." In the following years he worked as Deputy Associate Administrator for Exploration at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC from 1991 through 1993, he also held other positions throughout. In 1995 he became Manager of the Space Shuttle Engineering Office, a technically challenging job that he enjoyed greatly. "That was an amazingly good feeling," he later said, "owning four Shuttles. Going down to the Cape and visiting them and actually feeling ownership and responsibility for them." However, his opposition to the creation of the
United Space Alliance United Space Alliance (USA) was a spaceflight operations company. USA was established in August 1995 as joint venture of Rockwell International and Lockheed Martin, primarily to support operations of the Space Shuttle. The sale of Rockwell's a ...
was controversial, and he spent less than two years in the position.J. Greene, oral history, December 8, 2004, JSC OHP, page 27. From 1996 to 2000, Greene was Deputy Manager for Technical Development on the
International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...
. He received the
NASA Distinguished Service Medal The NASA Distinguished Service Medal is the highest award that can be bestowed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States. The medal may be presented to any member of the federal government, including both milita ...
, the Rotary Stellar Award, and a Silver Snoopy award for his work on the station. Finally, between 2000 and 2004, he served as Chief Engineer at
Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight in Houston, Texas (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight controller, flight control are conducted. ...
, where his role consisted primarily of advising the Center Director.


Retirement

After retiring from NASA in 2004, Greene worked as a part-time consultant on the Exploration Systems Architecture Study, which aimed to provide a blueprint for America's return to the Moon and Mars. "We put together a greybeard review team," explained NASA Associate Administrator Rex Geveden, describing Greene as "a famous technical curmudgeon in the Agency."


In films

Greene was interviewed extensively for two
History Channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney General Entertainme ...
documentaries about Mission Control, ''Failure Is Not an Option'' and ''Beyond the Moon: Failure Is Not an Option 2''.


Footnotes


References

* * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Greene, Jay American aerospace engineers NASA flight controllers Space Shuttle Challenger disaster Polytechnic Institute of New York University alumni Engineers from Brooklyn 1942 births 2017 deaths 20th-century American engineers 21st-century American engineers Jewish engineers 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews