Director Christopher Johnston

Early Life

Christopher Johnston was an average kid, born into a wealthy family. He grew up highly educated and more than a little bored most of the time. During a family vacation, he witnessed shooting stars from a meteor shower and became fascinated with all things outerspace. He already had wealth, but he felt that the stars were calling him to learn more about them.

Education

He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Princeton University, specializing in physics with a minor in astronomy.

He then transferred to the University of California, Berkley, for his Doctorate in Astrophysics.

Family

While at Berkley, he met and married Margaret Koch. They have two children, but little else is known about his family life. His wife and children avoid the public eye when possible, however his wife attends fundraisers with him and is considered to be a beautiful and gracious hostess.

Work History

He was recruited to Lockeed Engineering right out of college, but joined NASA five years later.

Johnston worked at NASA and joined the SETI program when it formed. When it was separated out into the The SETI Institute, he transferred with the other members of the tiny team.

Quietly working in the background, he grew the program and eventually became the director.

Private Information

While working for NASA, Johnston became aware of extraterrestrial life. As many of his peers knew, they could not let this evidence reach the public for fear of causing a panic. He felt the best solution would be to gradually acclimate the populace to the concept of aliens, helping them to accept the aliens as fellow inhabitants of the universe rather than potential attackers.

In his role as the Director of SETI, he became familiar with the Controller who managed Space Station Earth and worked to maintain friendly relations.

When the Spaceport Crew Members inadvertently invited the aliens to visit, he watched closely, pleased to see that the young people handled the interactions with more talent than he would have expected. He made contact with their CEO, Cordell Klakowicz and helped them move forward in bringing Earth into the Galactic Alliance.