Kobie Boykins
Kobie Boykins is a NASA JPL engineer and Mars rover designer who shares the wonder of exploration and the power of human curiosity and innovation.
Rocketman
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Space Engineer
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Optimism Personified
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Rocketman • Space Engineer • Optimism Personified •
More about Kobie
Kobie Boykins became a mechanical engineer because he wanted to be “that guy who figures out how to design and build things to function at their highest level.” Well, he’s succeeded. He is now a lead principal engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. In more than 25 years at the lab, Kobie has worked on every Mars mission since Pathfinder, which took the first rover “Sojourner” to Mars. Later, he designed the solar arrays to power the Mars Exploration Rovers —“Spirit” and “Opportunity”— that sent images and data back to Earth, leading to the discovery that the surface of Mars once held water.
Next, Kobie led the mobility and remote sensing teams for Mars Science Laboratory rover “Curiosity,” designing the actuators that powered the 7-foot-tall rover with a 7-foot arm that operates 10 different tools and 17 cameras. This rover outlived its predicted life and NASA extended its initial 2-year mission indefinitely. In 2013, Kobie received a NASA Exceptional Service Medal, one of the highest honors given to NASA employees and contractors.
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Since 2013, Kobie has led the NASA Europa Clipper mission as Chief Engineer. On October 14, 2024, the Clipper launched into space to begin its six year journey to Jupiter. Once in Jupiter’s orbit, in 2030, the Clipper will conduct nearly 50 flybys of one of Jupiter’s four moons, the ice-encrusted Europa, performing extensive scientific testing. The mission seeks to determine whether the surface ice on Europa holds liquid water beneath it, signifying the capacity for life. The mission may also answer how water disappeared from Mars.
Speaking Topics
Leadership
Managing Change
Team Dynamics
Science
Exploration
Overcoming Obstacles
Watch Kobie in action
Presentations
Beyond Earth: The Quest for Life
Embark on a thrilling journey through more than two decades of space exploration with NASA engineer Kobie Boykins, as he shares highlights from all of the Mars Rover missions and the latest from the 2024 launch of the Europa Clipper, currently on a 6 year trajectory to orbit Jupiter, then perform 50 flybys of its icy moon Europa.
"Exploration is asking the questions that need answers."
– Kobie Boykins