Alumnus recipient of prestigious NASA award

Dan J. Fry has been awarded NASA’s Exceptional Achievement Medal “for outstanding technical leadership in the field of Space Radiation protection, allowing for the improved crew safety for NASA human exploration missions.”

Fry received his PhD Physics at K-State in 2003 under the advisement of Amit Chakrabarti, professor of Physics and current dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

The Exceptional Achievement Medal is awarded to civilian members of NASA or military astronauts for a significant, specific accomplishment or substantial improvement in operations, efficiency, service, financial savings, science, or technology which contributes to NASA’s mission.

Fry is a technical lead in the Space Radiation Analysis Group at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, with focus on radiation shielding technologies and radiation detection instrumentation for exploration. He also serves as the International Space Station System Manager for all station radiation monitoring detectors."

Dan resides in Houston with wife Erge Edgu-Fry (2003) and their four children. Erge also received her PhD in Physics from K-State in 2003 and is employed at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

Photo Courtesy of NASA