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2d ago

Dave Gallagher Confirmed as New JPL Director as Laurie Leshin Prepares to Step Down

Laurie Leshin will leave her role on June 1, 2025, with Gallagher, a 36-year JPL veteran, set to lead the lab into its next chapter.

Laurie Leshin, Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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Laurie Leshin headshot

Overview

  • Laurie Leshin, the first woman to lead NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will step down as director on June 1, 2025, citing personal reasons.
  • Dave Gallagher, currently JPL’s associate director for Strategic Integration, has been selected by Caltech to succeed Leshin as the lab’s 11th director.
  • Gallagher brings 36 years of JPL experience, having held key leadership roles in major projects like the Hubble Space Telescope and the Spitzer Space Telescope.
  • Under Leshin’s leadership since 2022, JPL advanced or launched significant missions, including Psyche, Europa Clipper, and the forthcoming NISAR satellite.
  • Leshin will remain at Caltech as a Bren Professor of Geochemistry and Planetary Science, focusing on her research and family recovery from the Eaton Fire.