Bhavya Lal, an Indian-American has been appointed as an acting Chief of Staff by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Bhavya Lal, according to reports, served as a member of Presidential Transition Agency Review Team for the agency who oversaw the transition of power to Joe Biden.
Lal, as per NASA, has an executive experience in engineering and space technology. She served as a member of research staff at the Institute of Defence Analyses Sciences and Technology Policy Institute from 2005 to 2020.
According to a statement made by NASA, "There, she led the analysis of space technology, strategy, and policy for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and National Space Council, as well as federal-space oriented organizations, including NASA....."
Lal has also served on five high-impact National Academy of Science Committees. She also served two consecutive terms at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Federal Advisory Committee on Commercial Remote Sensing. She was also an external Council member of Innovative Advanced Concepts Programs of NASA.
Lal was President of C-STPS LLC before joining Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPL). She also served as the director of Center for Science and Technology Policy Studies at Abt Associates.
Lal is a co-founder of annual conference on Nuclear and Emerging Technologies in Space under the American Nuclear Society. She is also a co-chair of it. She also co-organizes with the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, a seminar on space history and policy.
The statement added that she was selected to be a corresponding member of International Academy of Aeronautics due to his many contributions in the sector of space.
Lal did her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Nuclear Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She also possess a doctorate from George Washington University in public policy and public administration.