From serving in the U.S. Army to helping prepare astronauts to explore the lunar surface, Ike Theriot built a path to NASA\u00a0through discipline and determination.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Theriot serves as the\u00a0Flight Operations Surface Testing\u00a0lead in the\u00a0Exploration Extravehicular Activity\u00a0Operations Branch within the EVA, Robotics, and Crew Operations Division at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston. He integrates\u00a0flight\u00a0operations\u00a0testing needs across the\u00a0Artemis\u00a0program,\u00a0ensuring teams have the data, procedures, and experience\u00a0required\u00a0to\u00a0prepare astronauts to live and work on the Moon.\u00a0He is currently transitioning from this role to focus on mission development, astronaut training, and mission execution for the next lunar\u00a0landing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Theriot\u00a0helps\u00a0develop and execute simulated moonwalks at Johnson and at field locations across the U.S.\u00a0and internationally. He also helped lead development of the\u00a0Lunar Grid Reference System,\u00a0designed specifically for human operations on the Moon\u00a0and\u00a0now\u00a0incorporated into flight control systems.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Theriot plans and executes testing in facilities such as NASA\u2019s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory and the\u00a0Space Vehicle Mockup Facility.\u00a0He often serves as a suited test subject and trains others to become test conductors and test leads, building the next generation of surface operations experts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, the agency\u2019s 40-foot-deep pool used to simulate microgravity, Theriot has supported International Space Station spacewalk rehearsals and lunar surface testing, helping refine procedures that astronauts will use in orbit and on the Moon.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Theriot has supported testing of NASA\u2019s government reference exploration spacesuit design and Axiom Space\u2019s lunar spacesuit, the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit, or\u00a0AxEMU. In\u00a0the Active Response Gravity Offload System, known as ARGOS, he practiced geologic sampling operations in the\u00a0AxEMU, examining a collected sample before stowing it. The system offloads body weight to simulate lunar gravity, allowing teams to refine surface procedures and hardware performance before\u00a0astronauts\u00a0step onto the lunar terrain.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He has also evaluated new lighting configurations during suited test runs supporting development of\u00a0Artemis\u00a0crew training curriculum, assessing how visibility affects safety and task execution in a simulated lunar environment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In addition,\u00a0Theriot supports International Space Station\u00a0spacewalks\u00a0as a certified\u00a0flight\u00a0controller and was recently selected as a\u00a0capsule\u00a0communicator, or\u00a0capcom. He has begun simulation training for that role, where he will serve as the voice between\u00a0the\u00a0Mission Control\u00a0Center\u00a0and astronauts in\u00a0low Earth orbit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Theriot\u2019s work extends far beyond NASA facilities, into remote environments that mirror the realities of lunar surface operations.\u00a0During a field campaign at\u00a0Kamestastin\u00a0Crater in Labrador, Canada, Theriot trained alongside members of the Artemis II crew. Formed approximately 36 million years ago, the impact crater provides terrain\u00a0similar to\u00a0areas astronauts may\u00a0encounter\u00a0on the Moon and offers valuable geology training in a remote environment accessible only by boat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Theriot\u2019s interest in space began\u00a0while deployed overseas\u00a0with the Army. In Iraq, he was tasked with setting up a satellite transceiver that failed on first power-up. After\u00a0observing\u00a0technicians perform field repairs, he began taking online engineering courses in his spare time, studying orbital mechanics, circuit design, cryptography, and space power systems. Later, while deployed to Afghanistan, he spent evenings stargazing and tracking the space station as it passed overhead.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After leaving the Army, Theriot earned a\u00a0mechanical engineering degree\u00a0from the University of Houston\u00a0and secured an internship at Johnson in 2016, rotating between\u00a0engineering and\u00a0flight\u00a0operations\u00a0teams. He accepted a full-time position in 2019, just as NASA announced plans to return astronauts to the Moon under the Artemis\u00a0program.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His most valued achievements involve setting others up for growth and success. Several years ago, Theriot created a Field Navigation Exercise at Challenger 7 Memorial Park\u00a0in Houston\u00a0to strengthen lunar surface navigation skills. As surface operations planning accelerated, he recognized many had limited field experience. He built the exercise and mentored others to lead it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
More recently, he served as test conductor for a major lunar spacesuit test series in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, spending months refining procedures and coordinating teams. On one occasion, the 19th Field Navigation Exercise and a Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory test run occurred on the same day. Both were led by people he had trained. Theriot took the day off.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Over time, his perspective on leadership has evolved. Early in his career, he believed the hardest challenges were technical. Now, he believes the greater challenge is providing the leadership and guidance that enable technical work to succeed.<\/p>\n
For the mission to the Moon and beyond, Theriot hopes the agency\u00a0demonstrates\u00a0something larger than\u00a0exploration\u00a0alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n