Valerie L. Thomas retired from NASA. At the time of her retirement, she held the positions of associate chief of the NASA Space Science Data Operations Office, manager of the NASA Automated Systems Incident Response Capability, and chair of the Space Science Data Operations Office Education Committee.

Valerie L. Thomas received a patent for her invention, the illusion transmitter. This device, initially adopted by NASA, was later adapted for screens in various applications, from surgery tools to televisions.