John Connolly

John Connolly is a Professor of Practice in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University. He holds an office in HRBB 727D and specializes in lunar geotechnical properties, human lunar lander design, and human space mission architecture. Prior to academia, he spent 36 years at NASA, directing human lunar and Mars mission design and serving as director and faculty member at the International Space University.

• Industry Experience: Directed NASA's human exploration mission design and development programs
• Research Focus: Lunar surface systems, spacecraft landing technologies, and mission systems engineering

His career bridges academia and aerospace industry, with deep expertise in planetary exploration engineering. No specific education details are provided in the text.