Mark S. Geyer

Mark S. Geyer led NASA’s Johnson Space Center as the 12th director in that role from May 25, 2018, until he stepped down for health reasons on May 3, 2021.  Under his tenure, and during a critical period of transition, more human space flight programs were directed from Houston than any other time in NASA history and helped return launch capability to American soil.  He also led Johnson through the longest government shutdown in American history, the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, as well as through a time of economic and equity challenges.

Born in Indianapolis, Geyer earned both his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from Purdue University in Indiana.  He began his NASA career in 1990 at Johnson in the new business directorate. In 1994, Geyer joined the International Space Station Program, where he served a variety of roles until 2005, including chair of the space station Mission Management Team, manager of the ISS Program Integration Office and NASA lead negotiator with Russia on space station requirements, plans and strategies.

From 2005 to 2007, Geyer served as deputy program manager of the Constellation Program, before transitioning to manager of the Orion Program, a position he held until 2015. Under Geyer’s direction, Orion was successfully tested in space on the Exploration Flight Test-1 spacecraft in 2014 bringing NASA another step closer to sending astronauts to deep space destinations.

Read Mark Geyer’s oral history transcripts

After supporting Orion, Geyer became deputy center director at Johnson under Center Director Ellen Ochoa. In this role, he helped Ochoa manage a broad range of human spaceflight activities, including the center’s annual budget of approximately $5.1 billion.

From October 2017 to May 2018, Geyer served as the acting deputy associate administrator for technical for the Human Explorations and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. In this position, he was responsible for assisting the associate administrator in providing strategic direction for all aspects of NASA’s human spaceflight exploration mission.  He also facilitated the initial development of Gateway, an outpost built by NASA’s commercial and international partners orbiting the Moon that will provide vital support for a long-term human return to the lunar surface, as well as a staging point for deep space exploration.

Mark Geyer died on December 7, 2021.  NASA Johnson Space Center Director Vanessa Wyche, who succeeded Geyer, marked the occasion by saying, “Today NASA mourns the loss of former Johnson Space Center Director Mark Geyer, a leader of human spaceflight, champion of diversity and inclusion, and friend to all who knew him.”  She continued, “Mark’s initiation of the center’s vision to dare to expand frontiers, unite with partners to complete bold missions, and explore space to benefit humanity is the hallmark of his legacy for Johnson Space Center.”

Visit the NASA Oral History Collections to read oral histories with NASA’s Johnson Space Center Directors and others across NASA.