- Scolese led the National Reconnaissance Office from 2019 to 2026
- Michael Blitzer resigned from the board
- The Potomac Officers Club will host the 2027 Defense R&D Summit on Feb. 4
Intuitive Machines has appointed five-time Wash100 Award winner and former National Reconnaissance Office Director Christopher Scolese to its board of directors. His appointment follows the resignation of board member Michael Blitzer, the company said Thursday.
Chairman Kam Ghaffarian said Scolese’s addition to the board will support the company as it scales space infrastructure for commercial, civil and national security customers, citing his leadership experience in civil and national security space programs.
Officials shaping defense research investment gather Feb. 4 for the Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Defense R&D Summit, featuring sessions on advanced space technologies, quantum computing and trusted AI. Save your seat now.
What Did Scolese Do at NRO?
Scolese was the 19th director of the National Reconnaissance Office and the first to be presidentially appointed and Senate-confirmed, serving from Aug. 1, 2019, until his departure on July 10, 2026. His tenure was the second-longest of any NRO director and spanned three presidential administrations.
The agency put more than 200 satellites into orbit over two years under his leadership as part of a proliferated architecture designed to shorten revisit times and reduce single points of failure. That buildout included a $1.8 billion classified contract with SpaceX subsidiary Starshield signed in 2021 and the 2023 launch of the SILENTBARKER constellation with the Space Force.
Scolese also directed the agency’s first enterprise-wide artificial intelligence strategy, applying AI to cyberthreat detection, technical document review and contract actions.
Roger Mason, then chief growth officer at V2X, was confirmed as Scolese’s successor on Aug. 7 by a vote of 51 to 47.
What Is Scolese’s Background?
Scolese spent more than 45 years in government service. He directed NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center from 2012 to 2019 and earlier served as the agency’s associate administrator, chief engineer and acting administrator, with project management roles supporting the Earth Observing System.
He began his career as a Navy officer working on naval nuclear propulsion programs.
Scolese now leads the Vanderbilt Institute for Innovations Beyond Earth and holds a faculty appointment in Vanderbilt University’s electrical and computer engineering department.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo and master’s and doctoral degrees in engineering from George Washington University.
