NASA has appointed Mark Kirasich to be manager of the agency's Orion Program. The Orion spacecraft is being developed to send astronauts to deep space destinations, such as an asteroid and ultimately to Mars, launching on the agency's Space Launch System rocket.

Kirasich has been deputy Orion Program manager since 2006. He now will be responsible for oversight of design, development and testing of the Orion spacecraft, as well as spacecraft manufacturing already underway at locations across the country and in Europe for ESA (European Space Agency).

"Mark brings a wealth of knowledge about NASA's human spaceflight efforts to the Orion Program manager position," said William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate in Washington. "By overseeing the team and the work needed to send Orion to deep space, and working directly with our international partner ESA to provide the spacecraft's service module, his leadership will be essential to enabling humans to pioneer farther into the solar system and continue our journey to Mars."

Kirasich began his NASA career in 1983 at Johnson Space Center as a member of the space shuttle flight operations team, quickly advancing to the position of lead space shuttle payload officer in mission control. In 1996, he was selected as a flight director in charge of planning and executing NASA human spaceflight missions, serving in that capacity for multiple space shuttle missions and International Space Station expeditions.

"I have seen firsthand Mark's impact on the Orion Program, and previously in key operations leadership roles at Johnson, and I look forward to having him help us extend the success of Orion's 2014 flight test forward," said JSC Director Ellen Ochoa.

Kirasich succeeds Mark Geyer, who became JSC's deputy director in August.

A native of Chicago, Kirasich received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1982 from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, and a master's degree in electrical engineering in 1983 from Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including NASA's Outstanding Leadership Medal and Space Flight Awareness Award, as well as a JSC Director's Commendation.

Across the country, elements of the Orion spacecraft are coming together for the first integrated mission with the Space Launch System. At NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, welding began in September on the next Orion destined for space. Next month, NASA will see the arrival of a test version of Orion's service module, provided by ESA, for testing and analysis at the agency's Plum Brook Station, near Sandusky, Ohio.