Dr. Lindsay Hays
NASA Planetary Science Division Acting Director, NASA Headquarters
Dr. Lindsay Hays is the Acting Director of the Planetary Science Division (Science Mission Directorate) at NASA Headquarters in Washington DC.
Prior to this role, Dr. Hays served in several leadership positions at NASA Headquarters. From 2024 to 2026 she was the Senior Scientist for Mars Exploration in the Science Mission Directorate, where she was responsible for the development of the Mars science strategy, including planning for technological and instrument development to support future Mars exploration missions.
As a Program Scientist in the Planetary Science Division (2020 to 2024), Dr. Hays worked in multiple roles, including Program Scientist for the Astrobiology Program, Program Scientist for the Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imagine (DAVINCI) mission to Venus, and the Deputy Program Scientist for the Mars Sample Return Campaign. She also served as the Deputy Lead for the 2022 Planetary Mission Senior Review, and helped manage and coordinate the PSD response to the 2023 Origins, Worlds, and Life: A Decadal Strategy for Planetary Science and Astrobiology 2023–2032 National Academies report.
Previously, Dr. Hays worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory as the Sample Return Science System Engineer in the Mars Program Office, where she also worked on science activities for Humans to Mars initiatives. As a NASA Postdoctoral Management Fellow, during her first stint at NASA Headquarters, Dr. Hays served as the Editor-in-Chief for the 2015 Astrobiology Strategy.
Dr. Hays, originally from Jupiter, FL, graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a bachelor’s and doctorate degrees from the Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences Department. Following graduate school, Dr. Hays conducted research, through the Agouron Geobiology Postdoctoral Fellowship, at Harvard University.
Dr. Hays’ research background is in organic geochemistry and major evolutionary transition points in Earth’s history, including mass extinction events. Dr. Hays is also a renowned public speaker and science communicator; she has appeared as a guest on several science and technology-focused podcasts, and regularly discusses NASA science across media outlets.