James Chase

Biography

Jim Chase is an engineering executive at Sophia Space and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Astronautical Engineering at the University of Southern California, where he co-teaches the ASTE 331/421 Spacecraft Design & Systems Engineering sequence. The course is a rigorous undergraduate design experience that integrates requirements flow-down, subsystem trade studies, verification and validation, cost and schedule realism, and mission-level system integration.

Jim spent more than two decades at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in senior technical and organizational leadership roles spanning mission formulation, flight systems engineering, mission operations, and institutional systems engineering. At JPL, he served as Chief Engineer for the Systems Engineering Division and as Section Manager for spacecraft and project systems engineering organizations.

His mission experience includes serving as Entry, Descent, and Landing co-lead on the Phoenix Mars Lander; Crosscutting Avionics V&V Lead on Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) during the launch campaign; and Flight Director for MSL during cruise and surface operations. Beyond these roles, he has also led multidisciplinary engineering teams and contributed across the full mission lifecycle from early formulation through flight operations.

Jim has also contributed to advancing modern systems engineering practices at JPL, including digital engineering, integrated tradespace modeling, verification and validation restructuring, and software tools for mission concept development and analysis.

His contributions to space mission engineering have been recognized with honors including the NASA Exceptional Engineering Achievement Medal and designation as a JPL Principal Engineer. He maintains a long-standing commitment to mentorship and STEM education, where he has volunteered in outreach programs, tutored middle school students, and taught calculus at John Muir High School in Pasadena.