Jean-Jacques Dordain (born 14 April 1946) was Director General of the European Space Agency between 2003 and 2015. Graduating at

École Centrale Paris École Centrale Paris (ECP; also known as École Centrale or Centrale) was a French grande école in engineering and science. It was also known by its official name ''École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures''. In 2015, École Centrale Paris mer ...

in 1968, Dordain began his scientific career in the French Aerospace Research Agency (

ONERA The Office National d'Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales (ONERA) is the French national aerospace research centre. It is a public establishment with industrial and commercial operations, and carries out application-oriented research to supp ...

) and later worked as a professor at the National Higher School of Aeronautics and Aerospace in the 1970s and 1980s. He has conducted extensive research in rocket engines and microgravity experiments. He was also a European astronaut candidate. In 1998 he was Executive Secretary at the Japanese Space Agency (then NASDA, now JAXA) and later started as Director of Launchers at ESA, where he became Director General in July 2003. He also holds the honorary function of Chancellor of the

International Space University The International Space University (ISU) is dedicated to the discovery, research, and development of outer space and its applications for peaceful purposes, through international and multidisciplinary education and research programs. ISU was f ...

. On 1 July 2015, he was succeeded as Director General of the ESA by Johann-Dietrich Woerner of Germany. In 2019, Dordain was elected as a member into the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of ...

for contributions to complex space systems and leadership of space exploration programs worldwide.

References

External links

Spacefacts biography of Jean-Jacques Dordain
1946 births Living people French businesspeople European Space Agency personnel École Centrale Paris alumni {{ESA-stub