Kathryn D. Sullivan

In 1988, Sullivan joined the U.S. Naval Reserve as an oceanography officer, retiring with the rank of captain in 2006. She was stationed in Guam.

Sullivan joined NASA in 1978 and was part of the first astronaut groups to include women.[7] She performed the first extra-vehicular activity (EVA) by an American woman during Space Shuttle Challenger mission STS-41-G on October 11, 1984. Sullivan and mission specialist David Leestma performed a 3.5-hour spacewalk in which they operated a system designed to show that a satellite could be refueled in orbit.[6] During their eight-day mission, the crew deployed the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite, conducted scientific observations of the Earth with the OSTA-3 pallet (including the SIR-B radar, FILE, and MAPS experiments) and large format camera (LFC), conducted a satellite refueling demonstration using hydrazine fuel with the Orbital Refueling System (ORS), and conducted numerous in-cabin experiments as well as activating eight "Getaway Special" canisters. STS-41G completed 132 orbits of the Earth in 197.5 hours, before landing at Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on October 13, 1984.

In April 1990, Sullivan served on the crew of STS-31, which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on April 24, 1990. During this five-day mission, crew members aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery deployed the Hubble Space Telescope, and conducted a variety of middeck experiments involving the study of protein crystal growth, polymer membrane processing, and the effects of weightlessness and magnetic fields on an ion arc.[8] They also operated a variety of cameras, including the IMAX cargo bay camera, for Earth observations from their record setting altitude of 380 miles. Following 76 orbits of the Earth in 121 hours, STS-31 Discovery landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on April 29, 1990.[8] In 1985, she became an Adjunct Professor of Geology at Rice University.[8]

Sullivan served as Payload Commander on STS-45, the first Spacelab mission dedicated to NASA's Mission to Planet Earth. During this nine-day mission, the crew operated the twelve experiments that constituted the ATLAS-I (Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science) cargo.[8] ATLAS-I obtained a vast array of detailed measurements of atmospheric chemical and physical properties, which will contribute significantly to improving our understanding of our climate and atmosphere. In addition, this was the first time an artificial beam of electrons was used to stimulate a man-made auroral discharge.[8]

Sullivan left NASA in 1993.[6] She flew on three Space Shuttle missions and logged 532 hours in space.[4]

Astronaut Kathryn Sullivan checks SIR-B antenna during STS-41-G

Astronaut Kathryn Sullivan using binoculars to view the Earth during STS-41-G

After leaving NASA, Sullivan served as chief scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In 1996 she was named president and CEO of the COSI Columbus, an interactive science center in Columbus, Ohio. From 2006 to 2011 she was Director for Ohio State University's Battelle Center for Mathematics and Science Education Policy as well as a volunteer science advisor to COSI. Under her leadership, COSI strengthened its impact on science teaching in the classroom and its national reputation as an innovator of hands-on, inquiry-based science learning resources.[9] She was appointed to the National Science Board by President George W. Bush in 2004.

In 2009, Sullivan was elected to a three-year term as the chair of the Section on General Interest in Science and Engineering for the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

In January 2011, the White House sent to the Senate the nomination of Sullivan by President Barack Obama to be an assistant secretary of commerce. Sullivan was first nominated in December 2010, but because the Senate did not approve her nomination and a bevy of others forwarded late in December, the White House renewed the formal requests.

On May 4, 2011, Sullivan was confirmed by unanimous consent of the U.S. Senate and appointed by President Obama to serve as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction and Deputy Administrator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.[10]

Sullivan became Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and Acting NOAA Administrator on February 28, 2013, following the resignation of Jane Lubchenco.[11]

President Obama nominated Sullivan to serve as the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator on August 1, 2013 and she was confirmed by the Senate on March 6, 2014.[12][11]

Sullivan was named the 2017 Charles A. Lindbergh Chair of Aerospace History, a competitive 12-month fellowship at the National Air and Space Museum. During her residence in the museum, Sullivan's research focused on the Hubble Space Telescope.[2]

In November 2019, Sullivan's book Handprints on Hubble: An Astronaut's Story of Invention was released from MIT Press. ‘’Handprints on Hubble’’ recounts Sullivan’s experience as part of the team that launched, rescued, repaired, and maintained the Hubble Space Telescope. She discussed the book and her participation in the Hubble telescope's development and launch on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour[13] and at the Royal Institution in London in March 2020.[14]

In spring 2020, Sullivan traveled on an expedition aboard the Triton Submarines DSV Limiting Factor to the bottom of the Challenger Deep, the deepest known point in the ocean, becoming the first woman to reach the deepest known point in the ocean[15] and the first person to travel to both Challenger Deep and to space.[16]

In November 2020, Sullivan was named a volunteer member of the Joe Biden presidential transition Agency Review Team to support transition efforts related to the Department of Commerce.[17]