Dr. Bonnie J. Dunbar, Ph.D., NAE
Chair, SICSA External Advisory Committee and Adjunct Faculty
Former NASA Astronaut

Professor Dunbar, an alumna of the University of Houston and former NASA astronaut, joined the faculty of the UH Cullen College of Engineering in 2013. Dunbar accepted her first corporate position in 1973 as a systems analyst at the Boeing Company. She then became a senior production operations research engineer with Rockwell International Space Division, where she helped develop equipment and processes for manufacturing the thermal protection system for the Space Shuttle. For her work, she was named Rockwell Engineer of the Year. As a NASA mission specialist astronaut and veteran of five space flights, Dunbar logged over 1,208 hours (50 days) in space. Following her flight career, Dunbar served as the president and CEO of the Museum of Flight in Seattle from 2005 to 2010. Since then, she has been devoted to inspiring young people all over the world to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) careers. Dunbar earned her B.S. and M.S. in ceramic engineering from the University of Washington in 1971 and 1975, respectively, as well as her Ph.D. in mechanical/biomedical engineering from the University of Houston in 1983. Dunbar is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Fellow and Life member of the American Ceramic Society, Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, an elected member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2002.