Martin D. Grashik

Martin D. “Marty” Grashik is the chief engineer for the Research and Technology discipline within the Engineering Directorate at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a position he has held since September 2023.

Grashik is among 12 chief engineers who report directly to the center’s engineering director, each of whom focuses on a specific engineering discipline or NASA program such as Artemis, Commercial Crew, and Launch Services. In Grashik’s case, he ensures technical excellence for research and technology projects at Kennedy by ensuring engineering best practices and processes are followed.

Experience

Grashik joined NASA Kennedy in September 2007 after graduating magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. While pursuing his degree, he also interned for two summers with the United States Army’s Tank Automotive/Armaments Command in Warren, Michigan, where he developed vehicle testing software and worked on computer models for the service’s Humvees.

For the first 13 years of his NASA career, Grashik was a test engineer for umbilical and launch accessories under the agency’s Exploration Ground Systems Program. He also served during that time as a mechanical design engineer for the International Space Station’s Research Plant Habitat and VEGGIE payload and as a systems and mechanical design engineer for the Advanced Exploration Systems In-Situ Resource Utilization carbon dioxide freezer project.

In 2014, Grashik completed his master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, with a concentration on robotics, dynamics, and controls.

In 2020, Grashik was named an assistant chief engineer for space station ground processing, where he led teams of contractor engineers in design and development of new ground support equipment. He also was the technical authority as the delegated chief engineer.

Awards

Grashik has won a variety of awards during his career at the agency, including a NASA Performance Award, a NASA On-The-Spot Award, and two Space Flight Awareness awards for his work on plant habitat at the space station and the crew access arm as part of the Exploration Ground Systems Program.

Personal

A native of Cape Canaveral, Florida, Grashik volunteers for NASA outreach activities, including science fair judging at the local and state levels as well as the NASA Robotic Mining Competition. He enjoys spending time with his wife and two daughters as well as hiking, camping, fishing, and SCUBA diving.

Biography last updated July 2025