Join us for our Monthly NSS North Houston Space Society (http://NorthHoustonSpace.org) meeting.
This will be a hybrid meeting. Come in person at Barbara Bush Library (6817 Cypresswood Drive, Spring, TX 77379) or join us online using Zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86974913400
The meeting will be on Saturday, April 11, 2026 at 2PM (US Central Time).
2:00 PM – Opening Remarks
2:15 PM – Nova Spotlight Award Winner from the Science and Engineering Fair of Houston (SEFH)
“From Single-Use to Repeatable: A Reusable Hybrid Rocket” Asa Gangjee & Suman Muppavarapu
2:45 PM – Featured Speaker: “NASA CapCom-Communicating from Earth to Space” – Ever Zavala Lt Col (ret) USAF & NASA ISS CapCom
4:00 PM – End of Meeting at the Library
(as soon as we can get there)
Informal get together at PJ’s Coffee near the library
About our Feature Speaker: Ever Zavala, Lieutenant Colonel (retired), United States Air Force
Ever Zavala is currently in training to serve as a test conductor, flight controller, and crew instructor for Artemis Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Operations at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC). While in training, he continues to serve as a Capsule Communicator (CapCom) in Mission Control Center – Houston in support of real-time operations aboard the International Space Station. Ever’s path to NASA is unique and began in the country of El Salvador.
Ever was born in El Salvador in 1977 and came to the United States as a war refugee in 1982. He and his family settled in Huntsville, Texas because of employment opportunities at a local mushroom plant. Ever’s parents picked mushrooms from compost for more than 20 years so that they could provide food, shelter, and education for three children. Their hard work paid off and they are now the proud parents of a doctor, engineer, and medical imaging specialist.
After graduating from high school in 1995, Ever attended Texas A&M University, graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering in 2000, and was then commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United State Air Force (USAF). Upon entering active-duty military service, Ever was selected to attend the Air Force Institute of Technology and graduated with Master of Science degrees in electrical engineering in 2002. After gaining flight test experience with the F-117A Combined Test Force, he was selected to attend the USAF Test Pilot School (TPS) and graduated with a Master of Science degree in flight test engineering in 2009.
After graduating from USAF TPS, Ever served as a flight test engineer for a wide variety of military aircraft and flew aboard 30 aircraft types including the C-12, F-16, and HH-60W. He also deployed to Qatar and Afghanistan in support of Operations Inherent Resolve and Freedom’s Sentinel. In 2021, Ever was selected to serve as the Deputy Director for the Department of Defense Human Spaceflight Payloads Office at NASA JSC.
While assigned to NASA JSC, Ever was selected to serve as a CapCom for NASA. After attaining his ISS CapCom certification, he was selected to serve and an Instructor CapCom for Astronaut Candidates and Lead CapCom for the SpaceX-28 and NG-24 cargo missions. Ever continued to serve as a USAF officer and NASA CapCom until he retired from active-duty military service in August of 2024.
After retiring from military service, Ever was hired to work as an Operations Safety Engineer within the Flight Operations Directorate (FOD) at NASA JSC. In this capacity, he conducted Independent Safety Verification Reviews for a variety of launch vehicle, spacecraft, and payload operations including Falcon 9, Crew Dragon, Orion, and the Artemis II mission. In January of 2026, Ever was hired to serve in his current position.
Ever is married to Mrs. Jessica Flores and they are the proud parents of Ms. Hope Ester Zavala.