Jonathan W. Cirtain is chief development officer for BWX Technologies, Inc. (BWXT). He is responsible for identifying and developing new technologies for the company by integrating technical expertise and resources across the enterprise. He joined BWXT as director of commercial technologies in 2017 and has also served as BWXT Advanced Technologies LLC president and chief technology officer.

Dr. Cirtain spent nine years with NASA. He received the prestigious Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and held positions of increasing responsibility from astrophysicist to the Science Research Office manager. He also co-founded Astraea, Inc., a machine learning and data science analytics company.

With a passion for design and innovation, Dr. Cirtain has contributed to and led teams in revolutionary science and technology applications. He has developed plasma confinement systems for lab research, a solid rocket motor system for suborbital vehicles, and graphics processing unit technology for video systems.

Dr. Cirtain earned his Ph.D. in physics from Montana State. He also holds two bachelor’s degrees in physics and mathematics from the University of Memphis. Dr. Cirtain has served on advisory committees for NASA, the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy, National Academy for Science and Engineering, Royal Academy of Science, European Space Agency and numerous universities.