Jon Jenkins

Biography

Dr. Jon M. Jenkins is Co-Investigator for Data Processing for both the Kepler Mission and the upcoming TESS Mission. He conducts research at NASA Ames Research Center on data processing and detection algorithms for discovering transiting extrasolar planets. Dr. Jenkins joined the Kepler team in 1995 to help develop the technology for Kepler before it was selected for flight in 2002. He led the design and development of the science processing pipeline for Kepler, which takes the data from raw pixels to the detection and initial characterization of transiting planet candidates. In February 2014, Dr. Jenkins joined NASA Ames Research Center to lead the effort to design and build a science processing center for NASA’s newly selected TESS Mission which will perform an all-sky transit survey to identify the closest and best Earth-size and super-Earth-size planets for follow-up and characterization. Dr. Jenkins received NASA’s Exceptional Technology Achievement Medal as well as NASA’s prestigious Software of the Year Award in 2010 for his work on Kepler. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Tech Institute of Technology and has co-authored over 120 scientific papers in planetary science, astrophysics and technology.

Research Interest

 Data Analytics