06/11/2026
Mark your calendar for Tuesday June 23rd Club luncheon! Public invited and just $25. Doubletree Hotel at 11:30, lunch served at 12:00 noon.
“NASA's Europa Clipper Mission: Ambitious Science and Engineering Challenges”
Speaker: Leo Bister, Jet Propulsion Lab, retired engineer
Leo spent 43 years helping to turn ambitious ideas into spacecraft that explore the solar system. After earning his Electrical Engineering degree from Cal Poly Pomona in 1982, he joined JPL and never looked back—contributing to
missions that have expanded humanity’s understanding of planets, oceans, and distant worlds. From Saturn’s rings on
Cassini to Martian soil with Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity, and Perseverance rovers, and most recently the journey to
Europa, his work has helped carry science millions of miles from Earth.
Much of his career was hands-on at the sharp end of exploration—assembly, test, and launch operations—often traveling to Florida to see missions through their final steps into space. Along the way, he balanced a full life at home: 44
years of marriage to his wife, Rosie, three children, and four grandchildren. Now retired, he’s shifting his focus closer to
home—running, biking, traveling, and giving back through local volunteering.