G. Scott Hubbard (born December 27, 1948) is a physicist who has been engaged in space-related research as well as program, project and executive management for more than 45 years including 20 years with NASA, culminating as director of NASA's Ames Research Center. As of 2012, Hubbard chairs SpaceX Safety Advisory Panel, he previously served as the NASA representative on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, was NASA's first Mars program director and restructured the Mars program in the wake of mission failures.
Personal life Hubbard was born December 27, 1948, in Lexington, Kentucky. His father, Robert Nicholas Hubbard (1920 -1997), was an attorney and later served as a State Court Judge. Hubbard's mother, Nancy Clay Hubbard (née Brown; 1922–2011), was a homemaker and served as executive director of the Elizabethtown, Kentucky Visitor Commission. Hubbard has one younger sister, Nancy Kelly Huber and half-sister Nicole Hubbard by his father's second marriage. Hubbard is currently married to Pat Power, a retired Federal Human Resources Manager. (Hubbard's first Marriage to Susan A. Ruggeri-Hubbard ended with Susan's death in 2014.) Hubbard is known personally and professionally by his middle name, Scott, because of the long-time connection to a family friend, Nannie F. Scott.
Early life Hubbard spent the majority of his childhood in Elizabethtown, Kentucky about 85 miles (137 km) west of Lexington. Hubbard's fascination with space exploration began at around nine years old, when Sputnik first orbited the Earth. His dad then brought home a 2-inch (51 mm) refracting telescope for the backyard which the two used to study the night skies, with a particular interest in Mars. Hubbard was an avid reader of both science fiction and science books by people such as George Gamow, Isaac Asimov, and Fred Hoyle, as well as books on astronomy and cosmology. Hubbard's interest in life in the universe eventually turned into—many years later—astrobiology. A few years after the telescope came home, Hubbard's father brought home a baritone ukulele which enthralled him. He learned from the included pamphlet a few basic chords and some simple tunes which he practiced for hours on end. From there he graduated to “Truetone” Spanish guitar but, proving far too frustrating to play, moved to a “Silvertone” quickly. He taught himself to play from books and by listening to the likes of the greats of the early 1960s, such as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, the Kingston Trio, Bob Dylan, and Peter, Paul and Mary. From this period in his life onward, space and music began a close race for his attention.
Academic background Hubbard graduated in 1966 from Elizabethtown High School as valedictorian of his class and as a National Merit finalist, which together brought a considerable number of scholarship offers. He chose to accept the Founder's Scholarship from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he double majored in physics and astronomy. From 1975 to 1977, Hubbard completed his graduate studies in solid-state physics and semiconductor physics at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2006, he received the prestigious Doctor of Science (Sc.D) degree from the Technical University of Madrid. The degree was awarded honoris causa after a thorough review of Hubbard's professional accomplishments and a vote by the Academic Council.
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