From 1981 to 2013 , he was the head of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City , a part of the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt , Maryland .
James E. Hansen ( born March 29 , 1941 in Denison , Iowa ) headed the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City , a part of the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt , Maryland , Earth Sciences Division until early 2013 .