The U.S. Space & Rocket Center has selected Huntsville aerospace and defense executive Tina Tucker as its next chief executive officer, marking a new chapter for one of Alabama’s most recognizable institutions.

The announcement was made Thursday by the U.S. Space & Rocket Center Commission, the governing board overseeing operations at the Rocket Center and Space Camp. Tucker is expected to officially join the organization July 6.

Tucker currently serves as president of Pinnacle Solutions, an Akima company, and brings more than two decades of experience in aerospace, defense and training systems development.

“The U.S. Space & Rocket Center deserves visionary, energetic, and effective leadership, and that is exactly what Tina Tucker brings,” said Rey Almodóvar in a statement. “She has the talent, the drive, and the creativity to lead this institution into its next great chapter.”

According to the board, Tucker emerged from a nationwide search conducted over several months with the assistance of a national executive search firm.

Tucker said she looks forward to building on the Rocket Center’s mission of inspiring future generations through science, engineering and space exploration.

“Space Camp and the Rocket Center embody the excitement of exploration past, present and future,” Tucker said. “I’m excited to carry that level of commitment, innovation and delivery forward as I join the amazing Rocket Center crew to advance our important mission.”

The leadership transition comes during a period of renewed national attention on space exploration through NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the moon. The Rocket Center, home to one of the nation’s largest collections of space artifacts and the iconic Saturn V rocket, also recently opened the new Inspiration4 Skills Training Complex.

The center serves as the official visitor center for NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and hosts visitors from all 50 states and multiple countries annually.

Tucker succeeds former CEO Kimberly Robinson, who announced her retirement in August.  

Before entering the private sector, Tucker began her career as a software engineer. She holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Austin Peay State University and a master’s degree in project management from Florida Institute of Technology.