Daniel Goldin

The Honorable Daniel S. Goldin is an entrepreneur and technologist, having helped young high-tech companies thrive through his innovation advisory company Cold Canyon and most recently through his role as Senior Advisor at Cerberus Capital Management. His career has spanned space exploration and science, aeronautics, air traffic management, national security, semiconductors, communications and artificial intelligence. With his accumulated domain expertise, his present focus is to engage brilliant young technology companies to assure America’s supply chain’s vitality and global leadership.

Mr. Goldin had the distinction of serving as NASA’s longest-tenured Administrator from April 1992-November 2001 and reported to three U.S. Presidents: George H.W. Bush, William Jefferson Clinton, and George W. Bush. He not only led the re-emergence of NASA through one of its most challenging times after the Cold War, but he also helped foster east-west international cooperation in space. Toward this end, he lead a 16-nation team that designed, constructed and began initial operations of the $120B International Space Station without an in-space injury or loss of life. Also during his tenure, he guided NASA through the development of a new generation of spacecraft to enable the extended exploration of the solar system, deeper observations of the known universe and more precise observations of the physical and biological dynamics of the own planet, with the objective of enhancing the quality of life on Planet Earth and ultimately out of Earth Orbit.

Throughout his life and career, Mr. Goldin has relentlessly pursued his passion for astrophysics that was catalyzed at seven years old when his father, Louis Goldin, first took him to New York City’s Hayden Planetarium. Ever since, he developed a desire and commitment to help humanity begin to understand the complex laws of nature and their own origins, evolution, and destiny in the known universe with a career dedicated to building America’s major astrophysical observatories of the time. Mr. Goldin actively contributed to and provided the leadership for the design, development and deployment of the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, Chandra X-Ray Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope rescue mission, Spitzer Infrared Space Telescope, and most recently the James Webb Space Telescope – an observatory where in the mid-90s he guided the American astrophysical community and his NASA team to assure the Webb would have the capacity to see to the beginnings of creation and the capability to understand if life might exist elsewhere in the universe.

Prior to NASA, he was Vice President and General Manager of the TRW Space and Technology Group – now Northrop Grumman – where he guided a broad range of advanced space and technology developments that had an important impact on advancing America’s national security, scientific exploration of the solar system, space telescopes to observe the high energy universe, and development of advanced technologies and products for the global marketplace. Mr. Goldin began his career as a research scientist at NASA’s Glenn Research Center working on electric propulsion systems to enable future human interplanetary travel.

Mr. Goldin is a Member of the National Academy of Engineering, the International Academy of Astronautics, and The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue. He is a Fellow of the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics and the American Astronautical Society, and an Honorary Board Member of the Explorers Club. Mr. Goldin holds 18 Honorary Doctorates from the world’s great universities.