Tara Samuels, PhD

Affiliation: NASA Ames Research Center
Email: tara.samuels@nasa.gov

Professional Background

Dr. Tara Samuels is the Assistant Director in the Science Directorate, ensuring operational compliance and streamlining directorate business practices. She is also the Center’s Chief Knowledge Officer, responsible for overseeing the planning and execution of the Center’s knowledge management activities.

Tara began her career at NASA in 2015, supporting the Airworthiness and Flight Safety Review Board (AFSRB) and the Flight Readiness Review Board (FRRB) in the Aeronautics Projects Office in the Aeronautics Directorate. In 2016, she began serving as Chief Safety Officer for spaceflight, ISS payload, and airborne projects in the Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate. In 2019, she joined the Spaceflight Division in the Engineering Directorate as the acting Strategy and Operations Officer, leading business strategy and establishing operational cadence for the then-nascent organization.

Tara joined the Science Directorate in 2020 as a Systems Engineer on a variety of ISS payload missions in the Flight Systems Implementation Branch. She became the acting Branch Chief in January 2024, responsible for setting strategic direction of the organization, payload and mission concept development, staff supervision, contract management, and space and workforce planning. She was selected as the Center’s Chief Knowledge Officer in April 2024, and became the Assistant Director of Science in December of the same year.

In her spare time, Tara is a NASA JPL Solar System Ambassador and a Captain in the Civil Air Patrol, the civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, where she has served as a Mission Transport Pilot.

Tara holds an MS in Aerospace Engineering and an MBA from San Jose State University and received her Ph.D. from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.