GOES-R / GeoXO System Program Director Pam Sullivan at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is a recipient of a 2022 Presidential Rank Award, one of the most prestigious awards in the federal career civil service.
As System Program Director for the GOES-R / GeoXO System Programs, Sullivan is in charge of the development, integration, and launching of the Western Hemisphere’s most advanced weather-observing and environmental-monitoring satellites.
She oversees the development of the spacecraft and instruments, as well as the ground system that receives the data from the satellites, generates data products, and distributes the products to forecasters. The GOES-R Series includes NOAA’s operational GOES-East, GOES-West, and the upcoming GOES-T and GOES-U satellites. She is also overseeing the formulation for next generation of geostationary satellites known as GeoXO. NOAA’s Geostationary Extended Observations (GeoXO) satellite system will expand observations of Earth that the GOES-R Series currently provides from geostationary orbit.
Before joining NOAA, she managed the GOES-R Series Flight project at NASA and served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force. Sullivan is a five-time recipient of the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in astronautical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Chosen by President Biden, the Presidential Rank Awards recognize the hard work and important contributions of dedicated civil servants in the American federal workforce. Sullivan was honored with the Distinguished Executive Award for her sustained exceptional leadership, accomplishments, and service. Only 1% of the Senior Executive Service may receive the Distinguished rank.
The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 established the Presidential Rank Awards Program to recognize a select group of career members with a sustained record of exceptional performance.