MSFC Director Dr. J. Wayne Littles and his wife with President Bill Clinton in the Oval Office of the White House following the presentation of the Presidential Rank Award for Distinguished Service. Other NASA honorees and their spouses are also pictured.
Prior to his appointment as Center Director, Littles served as NASA Associate Administrator for the Office of Space Flight (1994-1996). Littles began his NASA career in 1967 when he worked as an engineer in Marshall's former Propulsion and Vehicle Engineering Directorate. He worked in various capacities at the Marshall Center, including Science Engineering Director (1988-1989) and Center Deputy Director (1989-1994) before transferring to NASA Headquarters in 1994, as Chief Engineer. Littles was involved in the redesign of the space shuttle solid rocket booster, blamed for the Challenger disaster in 1986.[4]
Littles was also a witness for the Rogers Commission, which investigated the challenger Disaster[5]
During his two years as Center Director, Dr. Littles' administration was responsible for the space lab mission, the space science projects, alternative light-weight launch vehicles, and their engine development. He retired from NASA in 1998.
