Mike Gaunce

Michael (Mike) Gaunce has worked for the U.S. Government for 40 years, the last 34 of which have been with NASA, first at the Johnson Space Center, in Houston, Texas, and then at the Ames Research Center in California.

He is currently the Mission Manager for the SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) Science Project.  SOFIA, a heavily-modified 747-SP aircraft, which flew science missions from 2010-2022, is now in its closeout phase.  Among other accomplishments on SOFIA, he was instrumental in setting up and leading two international SOFIA deployments during the pandemic.

During his career, he has held a variety of engineering, project management, and operational positions in the government, and has managed multiple international science field campaigns for NASA, including missions to New Zealand, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama, Sweden, Norway, Germany, French Polynesia, Canada, Mexico, Hawaii, and the Cape Verde Islands.  In the wake of Hurricane Maria in 2017, he was detailed to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), as a part of the national Surge Capacity Force, and assisted in disaster relief in Puerto Rico.  He is also a long-time community volunteer.

Mike has received numerous awards and commendations over his career, including two NASA Exceptional Achievement Medals, a “Silver Snoopy” award, two NASA Silver Achievement Medals, and over two dozen NASA Group Achievement Awards.  Mike has Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Aeronautical & Astronautical Engineering from Purdue University in Indiana.