Carlos Monge

Carlos Monge is the branch chief of the Test, Launch, and Recovery Operations in the Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) Program at NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In this role, he supervises and leads the EGS operations division through the development, planning, scheduling, and execution of integrated, cross-program, and interagency activities to test, launch, and recover Artemis missions and return humans to the Moon and beyond.

Monge’s team is responsible for planning and executing complex and hazardous test operations associated with integrated ground systems verification and validations, and flight and ground system integrated testing of the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft. His branch leads the planning and execution of Artemis mission launch countdown operations in the Launch Control Center firing room along with the recovery, rescue, and retrieval of the flight crew and Orion spacecraft once they splash down in the ocean.

Experience

He previously served as the certified tanking test director during the Artemis I launch countdown. He also was the lead NASA test director responsible for the planning, integration, scheduling, and operations associated with the integrated verification and validation, integrated flight hardware testing, and launch operations-related products for Artemis I. He led the development of various Artemis I launch countdown wet dress rehearsals, and tanking test tasks and activities.

Monge joined NASA in October 2015 as a NASA test director.

He was a production integration and test engineering manager with the Material Review Board Authority for the Boeing Company from 2010 to 2015. He managed a team of over 30 engineers through various technical and procedural activities supporting the Boeing 787 Dreamliner commercial airplane production operations and final assembly through all phases of the build cycle, including fabrication, integration, repair, system testing, root cause corrective action investigations, and manufacturing support. His team represented the engineering community in the design, assembly, and test process of the aircraft all the way through the post-production environment. 

From 2008 to 2010, Monge was a space shuttle main propulsion system engineer with United Space Alliance (USA). He developed and authored integrated test plans and repair procedures to satisfy critical spacecraft flight hardware and system functional requirements. From June 2000 to March 2008, he was a space shuttle senior aerospace technician, also with USA. He was part of a team that installed, repaired, and maintained various space shuttle flight systems hardware and performed tests and checkouts of flight hardware and systems.

Education

Monge received an airframes and powerplant mechanic certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration in 1999, and earned a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the Florida Institute of Technology in 2008.

Awards

He is the recipient of agency awards and recognition, including a Spaceflight Awareness Team Award in 2017, a NASA Honor Award Silver Achievement Medal in 2019, and a KSC Certificate of Commendation in 2020. He also received a Boeing Meritorious Invention Award in 2014, and a United Space Alliance Superior Achievement Recognition Team Award in 2004.

Personal

Monge was born in Lima, Peru, and raised in Miami, Florida. He and his wife, Marisol, reside in Melbourne, Florida, with their children, Corbin, Aiden, Gabriel, Matias, and Nicolas. They have a Labradoodle named Zoey.

Monge likes to train and compete in triathlons of all distances, but prefers the longer courses. He enjoys mountain biking, skateboarding, and recreational volleyball.

Monge is a proud veteran who served in the United States Marine Corps for four years and the Florida Army National Guard as an Infantry Officer for five years. 

Biography last updated May 2023