David John McComas | |
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| Born | May 22, 1958 (age 66) Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (B.S.) University of California, Los Angeles (M.S., Ph.D.) |
| Occupation(s) | Professor of Astrophysics sciences,space physicist, senior executive |
| Known for | space scientist and Principal Investigator of multiple space missions |
David John McComas (born May 22, 1958) is an American space physicist, Professor of Astrophysical Sciences, and leads the Space Physics at Princeton Group at Princeton University. He was the Princeton University Vice President for the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab (PPPL) from 2016 - 2024 and previously Assistant Vice President for Space Science and Engineering at the Southwest Research Institute, Adjoint Professor[1] of Physics at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), and was the founding director of the Center for Space Science and Exploration[2] at Los Alamos National Laboratory. He is noted for his extensive accomplishments in experimental space plasma physics, including leading instruments and missions to study the heliosphere and solar wind: IMAP, IBEX, TWINS, Ulysses/SWOOPS, ACE/SWEPAM, and Parker Solar Probe. He received the National Academy of Science's 2023 Arctowski Medal, European Geosciences Union 2022 Hannes Alfven Medal, SCOSTEP 2022 Distinguished Scientist Award, a NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal in 2015, the 2014 COSPAR Space Science Award, and the American Geophysical Union 1993 Macelwane Medal.