<![CDATA[ Latest from Space.com in Nasa-administrator-nasa-history ]]> https://www.space.com/tag/nasa-administrator-nasa-history Tue, 30 Dec 2025 13:00:00 +0000 en <![CDATA[ How NASA changed in 2025 — possibly forever ]]> For an agency shooting for the moon and onward to Mars, NASA in 2025 has been on a roller coaster ride of proposed budget cuts, personnel layoffs, and potential elimination of science missions.

A key question: Have these various traumas changed NASA dramatically, and potentially permanently?

Battle lines are being drawn and now Congress has to spin up their views as to the space agency's overall stability and, indeed, its future. As for what's ahead, it's all sausage making — political style. The outcome for NASA is literally a to-be-determined matter of time and space.

Corporate/agency history

"Clearly, things have changed," said Henry Hertzfeld, a research professor of space policy and international affairs at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, noting that his observations are from afar, not from within the space agency.

"A lot of very experienced people with a lot of 'corporate/agency history' are now gone from the agency. Some may have retired soon anyway, but that is not an excuse or explanation of the changes," Hertzfeld told Space.com.

Since the whole policy office at NASA was eliminated, said Hertzfeld, many of those people and functions are gone. Whether, for example, economics and other policy offices will be missed or not is arguable, he said.

"But I do think not having them is a significant loss of talent and input into NASA programs and decisions," Hertzfeld said.

Long-term loss

Like many suggest, if Congress doesn't act with funding, the real loss is in the science area.

"There will be fewer new initiatives and many cuts in the work that now won't be done across the board," said Hertzfeld.

"The science part of NASA is relatively small but it is the one true research area that has produced significant learning and information over the years. And, it will be a long-term loss since the agency will likely face more difficulty in hiring and keeping highly trained and skilled scientists," Hertzfeld said. "They will go elsewhere … and elsewhere is not the government."

People hold signs outside on a sunny day in protest of NASA budget cuts, July 20, 2025. (Image credit: Space.com / Josh Dinner)

Investment dollars

Hertzfeld said that one less well understood impact is the rapid funding of various defense and security space efforts.

"We read about the significant increase in private sector investment activity oriented toward space. But what is really happening is that the Department of Defense spending on buying more from companies is the main driver of these investment dollars," said Hertzfeld. "NASA programs and needs are no longer the main stimulus for 'commercial' space activity."

The resulting innovation and products for new space activities, Hertzfeld added, will primarily benefit the security aspects and not so much the civil space programs. "Thus, the aggregate commercial and government space sector will benefit, but quite differently from what we experienced in history," he said.

Heightening concerns

Keith Cowing is founder of the private NASA overseer website, NASA Watch. He is passionate about the space agency's revered history and its future.

"While every NASA field center saw workforce reductions of around 20%, perhaps no center was more drastically affected by budget cuts than NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center," pointed out Cowing.

There was a long term plan in place that would have morphed Goddard over the course of nearly a decade to better adapt it to future NASA needs, Cowing told Space.com. That plan was co-opted by Administration personnel in place at NASA Headquarters, he said, to accelerate and expand Goddard facility closures that will result in half of the center's buildings and laboratories being mothballed, he said.

"These cuts are a standout when compared to changes elsewhere at NASA," Cowing said, "so much so that the House Oversight and House Science, Space and Technology committees sent repeated inquiries to NASA asking for an explanation."

The result is that "NASA has been slow to respond, thus heightening concerns about the overall impact on NASA science programs as presented by the White House in its FY 2026 budget request," Cowing said.

Tremendous challenge

Marcia Smith is founder and editor of the informative SpacePolicyOnline.com

NASA is not "crippled," Smith said, but time will tell the effects of the loss of personnel.

"I certainly don't know the names and positions of all the 4,000 or so people who left, but of the people I personally know, they were the best of the best," Smith advised. "Now, surely, a lot of terrific people are still there, but how they're going to manage to execute whatever programs remain with so many excellent colleagues gone will be a tremendous challenge."

Both what's happening at the NASA Goddard field center and given layoffs of Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) talent, "is extremely worrisome to American leadership in space science," said Smith.

Smith observed that it may well be the effect on morale is the most dramatic effect.

"People who have spent their lives keeping America as the world leader in civil space science and technology basically being told their work is valueless and can be erased with the wave of a 'DOGE wand.' That's tough," Smith said.

DOGE stands for the Department of Government Efficiency, a special commission put in place by President Donald Trump, established to slash federal spending.

Planetary Society CEO Bill Nye addresses press and supporters on Capitol Hill on Oct. 5, 2025. (Image credit: Planetary Society)

Years to rebuild

NASA does what no other organization — public or private — can do, said Jack Kiraly, director of government relations for the Planetary Society, a member-funded nonprofit organization based in Pasadena, California that's dedicated to advancing space science and exploration.

"The agency has led the world in the exploration of space, redefining our understanding of the universe, and inspiring countless innovations in science and technology," Kiraly told Space.com.

Kiraly sees the events of 2025 as a profound shock to NASA and the space community.

"The agency will begin the new year with a civil servant workforce smaller than what it had at the dawn of human spaceflight in 1961. Nearly 4,000 scientists, engineers and space professionals have left the agency through pressured resignation and layoffs amid rapid reorganizations and funding uncertainty," said Kiraly.

That action represents a loss of specialized expertise and institutional knowledge that will take years to rebuild, added Kiraly.

Pivotal moment

Beyond the immediate impacts, said Kiraly, the termination of NASA awards valued at more than $315 million and the reduction of future research opportunities have disrupted the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) pipeline that trains the next generation of scientists, engineers, and innovators.

Because NASA's activities involve every state and more than 75% of congressional districts, these effects will be felt nationwide, Kiraly said.

"The damage is real, but it doesn't have to be permanent," Kiraly said. "Congress has, in a bipartisan way, signaled to the White House and the public that they intend to fully fund NASA in 2026, rejecting the worst of the cuts proposed earlier this year."

And given the confirmation of Jared Isaacman to be NASA's Administrator "brings new leadership and momentum at a pivotal moment for the agency," Kiraly concluded.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/how-nasa-changed-in-2025-possibly-forever Jo9AGRUDbQGPXfYPmYchxF Tue, 30 Dec 2025 13:00:00 +0000 Wed, 22 Apr 2026 20:31:13 +0000 false false false

For an agency shooting for the moon and onward to Mars, NASA in 2025 has been on a roller coaster ride of proposed budget cuts, personnel layoffs, and potential elimination of science missions.

A key question: Have these various traumas changed NASA dramatically, and potentially permanently?

Battle lines are being drawn and now Congress has to spin up their views as to the space agency's overall stability and, indeed, its future. As for what's ahead, it's all sausage making — political style. The outcome for NASA is literally a to-be-determined matter of time and space.

Corporate/agency history

"Clearly, things have changed," said Henry Hertzfeld, a research professor of space policy and international affairs at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, noting that his observations are from afar, not from within the space agency.

"A lot of very experienced people with a lot of 'corporate/agency history' are now gone from the agency. Some may have retired soon anyway, but that is not an excuse or explanation of the changes," Hertzfeld told Space.com.

Since the whole policy office at NASA was eliminated, said Hertzfeld, many of those people and functions are gone. Whether, for example, economics and other policy offices will be missed or not is arguable, he said.

"But I do think not having them is a significant loss of talent and input into NASA programs and decisions," Hertzfeld said.

Long-term loss

Like many suggest, if Congress doesn't act with funding, the real loss is in the science area.

"There will be fewer new initiatives and many cuts in the work that now won't be done across the board," said Hertzfeld.

"The science part of NASA is relatively small but it is the one true research area that has produced significant learning and information over the years. And, it will be a long-term loss since the agency will likely face more difficulty in hiring and keeping highly trained and skilled scientists," Hertzfeld said. "They will go elsewhere … and elsewhere is not the government."

People hold signs outside on a sunny day in protest of NASA budget cuts, July 20, 2025. (Image credit: Space.com / Josh Dinner)

Investment dollars

Hertzfeld said that one less well understood impact is the rapid funding of various defense and security space efforts.

"We read about the significant increase in private sector investment activity oriented toward space. But what is really happening is that the Department of Defense spending on buying more from companies is the main driver of these investment dollars," said Hertzfeld. "NASA programs and needs are no longer the main stimulus for 'commercial' space activity."

The resulting innovation and products for new space activities, Hertzfeld added, will primarily benefit the security aspects and not so much the civil space programs. "Thus, the aggregate commercial and government space sector will benefit, but quite differently from what we experienced in history," he said.

Heightening concerns

Keith Cowing is founder of the private NASA overseer website, NASA Watch. He is passionate about the space agency's revered history and its future.

"While every NASA field center saw workforce reductions of around 20%, perhaps no center was more drastically affected by budget cuts than NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center," pointed out Cowing.

There was a long term plan in place that would have morphed Goddard over the course of nearly a decade to better adapt it to future NASA needs, Cowing told Space.com. That plan was co-opted by Administration personnel in place at NASA Headquarters, he said, to accelerate and expand Goddard facility closures that will result in half of the center's buildings and laboratories being mothballed, he said.

"These cuts are a standout when compared to changes elsewhere at NASA," Cowing said, "so much so that the House Oversight and House Science, Space and Technology committees sent repeated inquiries to NASA asking for an explanation."

The result is that "NASA has been slow to respond, thus heightening concerns about the overall impact on NASA science programs as presented by the White House in its FY 2026 budget request," Cowing said.

Tremendous challenge

Marcia Smith is founder and editor of the informative SpacePolicyOnline.com

NASA is not "crippled," Smith said, but time will tell the effects of the loss of personnel.

"I certainly don't know the names and positions of all the 4,000 or so people who left, but of the people I personally know, they were the best of the best," Smith advised. "Now, surely, a lot of terrific people are still there, but how they're going to manage to execute whatever programs remain with so many excellent colleagues gone will be a tremendous challenge."

Both what's happening at the NASA Goddard field center and given layoffs of Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) talent, "is extremely worrisome to American leadership in space science," said Smith.

Smith observed that it may well be the effect on morale is the most dramatic effect.

"People who have spent their lives keeping America as the world leader in civil space science and technology basically being told their work is valueless and can be erased with the wave of a 'DOGE wand.' That's tough," Smith said.

DOGE stands for the Department of Government Efficiency, a special commission put in place by President Donald Trump, established to slash federal spending.

Planetary Society CEO Bill Nye addresses press and supporters on Capitol Hill on Oct. 5, 2025. (Image credit: Planetary Society)

Years to rebuild

NASA does what no other organization — public or private — can do, said Jack Kiraly, director of government relations for the Planetary Society, a member-funded nonprofit organization based in Pasadena, California that's dedicated to advancing space science and exploration.

"The agency has led the world in the exploration of space, redefining our understanding of the universe, and inspiring countless innovations in science and technology," Kiraly told Space.com.

Kiraly sees the events of 2025 as a profound shock to NASA and the space community.

"The agency will begin the new year with a civil servant workforce smaller than what it had at the dawn of human spaceflight in 1961. Nearly 4,000 scientists, engineers and space professionals have left the agency through pressured resignation and layoffs amid rapid reorganizations and funding uncertainty," said Kiraly.

That action represents a loss of specialized expertise and institutional knowledge that will take years to rebuild, added Kiraly.

Pivotal moment

Beyond the immediate impacts, said Kiraly, the termination of NASA awards valued at more than $315 million and the reduction of future research opportunities have disrupted the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) pipeline that trains the next generation of scientists, engineers, and innovators.

Because NASA's activities involve every state and more than 75% of congressional districts, these effects will be felt nationwide, Kiraly said.

"The damage is real, but it doesn't have to be permanent," Kiraly said. "Congress has, in a bipartisan way, signaled to the White House and the public that they intend to fully fund NASA in 2026, rejecting the worst of the cuts proposed earlier this year."

And given the confirmation of Jared Isaacman to be NASA's Administrator "brings new leadership and momentum at a pivotal moment for the agency," Kiraly concluded.

]]> <![CDATA[ US Senate confirms Jared Isaacman as new NASA administrator ]]> NASA finally has an official, permanent leader.

The U.S. Senate voted today (Dec. 17) 67-30 to confirm billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, ending more than a year of uncertainty as the space agency has followed marching orders from temporary chiefs

Isaacman, 42, is the billionaire founder of the payment-processing company Shift4. He's also an astronaut and sponsor of Polaris, a privately funded spaceflight program chartering SpaceX launches to orbit. Two of those missions have launched to date with Isaacman in the commander's seat, Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn, which made history as the first private astronaut mission to Earth orbit and the first flight to feature a civilian spacewalk, respectively.

Though some members of Congress have expressed concerns about Isaacman's relationship with SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk, citing the potential for bias or favoritism, Isaacman's nomination has been favorably received by much of the space community.

Or nominations, rather, for there have been two of them. Donald Trump first tapped Isaacman for the top NASA job in December 2024, when he was still president-elect. Isaacman sat for a hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in April, which advanced his nomination to the full Senate, but lawmakers didn't get the chance to vote. Trump abruptly withdrew Isaacman's nomination in late May, halting the confirmation process and leaving NASA with an indefinite acting administrator.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

At the time, that position was held by Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro. In July, however, with no prospects for a new NASA administrator nomination on the horizon, Trump handed the role to Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has remained in the acting administrator position ever since.

Trump's reversal on Isaacman came amidst a public falling out between the president and Musk, with Trump posting on his social media site Truth Social that he hadn't realized Isaacman was "a blue-blooded Democrat, who had never contributed to a Republican before."

Isaacman came back into the spotlight again in early November, when a Politico report exposed a 62-page document, known as "Project Athena," that outlines Isaacman's vision for NASA. After it was made public, Isaacman called the document a tentative list of "ideas, thoughts on the direction of the agency" and how it might operate in a leaner, more efficient way. Trump renominated Isaacman for NASA chief on Nov. 4 (a day after the Politico report published), which paved the way for his official appointment today.

President Trump's fiscal year 2026 budget proposal slashed NASA's budget by nearly 25% and cut the agency's science funding by 47%. When pressed during his two Senate nomination hearings this year, Isaacman voiced support for much of the administration's space agenda, including landing astronauts back on the moon before China does so and sending humans to Mars. Isaacman also indicated his commitment to spend NASA's funds as directed. It's still unclear what that budget will be; Congress aims to restore NASA funding to previous years' levels, though a final appropriations bill has yet to be passed.

"Mr. Isaacman emphasized the importance of developing a pipeline of future scientists, engineers, researchers, astronauts, to support the science and technology development and align with NASA's objectives," Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) said before lawmakers began their roll call vote this afternoon, in a statement that announced her support for his confirmation. "I look forward to working with administrator Isaacman on the future STEM talent with both NASA and more broadly, with the aerospace and innovation sector."

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/us-senate-confirms-jared-isaacman-as-new-nasa-administrator TtVC4EDJwicwEqKUFv7oqX Wed, 17 Dec 2025 20:30:14 +0000 false false false

NASA finally has an official, permanent leader.

The U.S. Senate voted today (Dec. 17) 67-30 to confirm billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, ending more than a year of uncertainty as the space agency has followed marching orders from temporary chiefs

Isaacman, 42, is the billionaire founder of the payment-processing company Shift4. He's also an astronaut and sponsor of Polaris, a privately funded spaceflight program chartering SpaceX launches to orbit. Two of those missions have launched to date with Isaacman in the commander's seat, Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn, which made history as the first private astronaut mission to Earth orbit and the first flight to feature a civilian spacewalk, respectively.

Though some members of Congress have expressed concerns about Isaacman's relationship with SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk, citing the potential for bias or favoritism, Isaacman's nomination has been favorably received by much of the space community.

Or nominations, rather, for there have been two of them. Donald Trump first tapped Isaacman for the top NASA job in December 2024, when he was still president-elect. Isaacman sat for a hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in April, which advanced his nomination to the full Senate, but lawmakers didn't get the chance to vote. Trump abruptly withdrew Isaacman's nomination in late May, halting the confirmation process and leaving NASA with an indefinite acting administrator.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

At the time, that position was held by Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro. In July, however, with no prospects for a new NASA administrator nomination on the horizon, Trump handed the role to Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has remained in the acting administrator position ever since.

Trump's reversal on Isaacman came amidst a public falling out between the president and Musk, with Trump posting on his social media site Truth Social that he hadn't realized Isaacman was "a blue-blooded Democrat, who had never contributed to a Republican before."

Isaacman came back into the spotlight again in early November, when a Politico report exposed a 62-page document, known as "Project Athena," that outlines Isaacman's vision for NASA. After it was made public, Isaacman called the document a tentative list of "ideas, thoughts on the direction of the agency" and how it might operate in a leaner, more efficient way. Trump renominated Isaacman for NASA chief on Nov. 4 (a day after the Politico report published), which paved the way for his official appointment today.

President Trump's fiscal year 2026 budget proposal slashed NASA's budget by nearly 25% and cut the agency's science funding by 47%. When pressed during his two Senate nomination hearings this year, Isaacman voiced support for much of the administration's space agenda, including landing astronauts back on the moon before China does so and sending humans to Mars. Isaacman also indicated his commitment to spend NASA's funds as directed. It's still unclear what that budget will be; Congress aims to restore NASA funding to previous years' levels, though a final appropriations bill has yet to be passed.

"Mr. Isaacman emphasized the importance of developing a pipeline of future scientists, engineers, researchers, astronauts, to support the science and technology development and align with NASA's objectives," Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) said before lawmakers began their roll call vote this afternoon, in a statement that announced her support for his confirmation. "I look forward to working with administrator Isaacman on the future STEM talent with both NASA and more broadly, with the aerospace and innovation sector."

]]> <![CDATA[ US Senate committee advances renomination of Jared Isaacman as head of NASA ]]> NASA may finally be on the cusp of regaining official leadership.

Jared Isaacman, the billionaire tech entrepreneur and sponsor of SpaceX's private Polaris spaceflight program, faced a key vote on Monday evening (Dec. 8) before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which determined whether or not to send his nomination as NASA chief to the full Senate. And the vote passed.

"Mr. Isaacman, I know that you are as committed to American supremacy in the final frontier as is this committee and the entire Senate," Committee Chairman Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in an emailed statement on Monday evening. "My hope is that you will be confirmed and in this role before the end of this year."

The hearing began Monday at 5:30 p.m. ET (2230 GMT). The Senate committee had said the proceedings will be broadcast live, but that turned out not to be the case.

Isaacman has flown to space twice. He privately funded both missions, which launched groundbreaking spaceflights aboard SpaceX Crew Dragons. The first, Inspiration4, was also the first all-civilian launch, while his second, Polaris Dawn, included the first civilian spacewalk.

In his nomination hearing before the committee last week, Isaacman faced questions scrutinizing his relationship with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and probing his position on NASA's science and human spaceflight programs. It was Isaacman's second such hearing before the committee, which had the opportunity to press similar questions to him in April, during his first round through the nomination process.

Despite a positive and mostly bipartisan reception by lawmakers, a vote for Isaacman's confirmation earlier this year was halted when President Trump withdrew his nomination in May. Janet Petro, acting NASA Administrator at the time, later ceded the role to Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy when Trump appointed him to the position in July.

Isaacman quietly stepped aside, but little movement was made over the summer to nominate a new NASA chief as Duffy juggled dual roles at the space agency and DOT. Then, an early November report from Politico exposed a 62-page document, known as "Project Athena," outlining Isaacman's vision to outsource certain aspects of NASA to the commercial sector in order to operate a leaner, more efficient agency. A day after that report published, Trump renominated Isaacman for NASA's acting administrator.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

In addition to Isaacman, seven other federal appointments face votes this evening, including John DeLeeuw, of Texas, and Michael Graham, of Virginia, to the National Transportation Safety Board, Steven Haines, of Virginia, as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis, Robert Harvey, of Florida, as Federal Maritime Commissioner, Richard Kloster, of West Virginia, to the Surface Transportation Board, Adm. Kevin E. Lunday as Commandant of the United States Coast Guard and McCormack, of Virginia, as Under Secretary of Transportation for Policy.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 6 p.m. ET on Dec. 8 with the news that the hearing will not be webcast after all, then again at 6:45 p.m. ET with the news that the committee had advanced Isaacman's nomination to the full Senate.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/watch-live-us-senate-vote-to-appoint-jared-isaacman-as-head-of-nasa-today EoKGRRcvYHhEkaHZUELM4 Mon, 08 Dec 2025 18:00:00 +0000 Mon, 08 Dec 2025 23:47:28 +0000 false false false

NASA may finally be on the cusp of regaining official leadership.

Jared Isaacman, the billionaire tech entrepreneur and sponsor of SpaceX's private Polaris spaceflight program, faced a key vote on Monday evening (Dec. 8) before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which determined whether or not to send his nomination as NASA chief to the full Senate. And the vote passed.

"Mr. Isaacman, I know that you are as committed to American supremacy in the final frontier as is this committee and the entire Senate," Committee Chairman Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in an emailed statement on Monday evening. "My hope is that you will be confirmed and in this role before the end of this year."

The hearing began Monday at 5:30 p.m. ET (2230 GMT). The Senate committee had said the proceedings will be broadcast live, but that turned out not to be the case.

Isaacman has flown to space twice. He privately funded both missions, which launched groundbreaking spaceflights aboard SpaceX Crew Dragons. The first, Inspiration4, was also the first all-civilian launch, while his second, Polaris Dawn, included the first civilian spacewalk.

In his nomination hearing before the committee last week, Isaacman faced questions scrutinizing his relationship with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and probing his position on NASA's science and human spaceflight programs. It was Isaacman's second such hearing before the committee, which had the opportunity to press similar questions to him in April, during his first round through the nomination process.

Despite a positive and mostly bipartisan reception by lawmakers, a vote for Isaacman's confirmation earlier this year was halted when President Trump withdrew his nomination in May. Janet Petro, acting NASA Administrator at the time, later ceded the role to Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy when Trump appointed him to the position in July.

Isaacman quietly stepped aside, but little movement was made over the summer to nominate a new NASA chief as Duffy juggled dual roles at the space agency and DOT. Then, an early November report from Politico exposed a 62-page document, known as "Project Athena," outlining Isaacman's vision to outsource certain aspects of NASA to the commercial sector in order to operate a leaner, more efficient agency. A day after that report published, Trump renominated Isaacman for NASA's acting administrator.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

In addition to Isaacman, seven other federal appointments face votes this evening, including John DeLeeuw, of Texas, and Michael Graham, of Virginia, to the National Transportation Safety Board, Steven Haines, of Virginia, as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis, Robert Harvey, of Florida, as Federal Maritime Commissioner, Richard Kloster, of West Virginia, to the Surface Transportation Board, Adm. Kevin E. Lunday as Commandant of the United States Coast Guard and McCormack, of Virginia, as Under Secretary of Transportation for Policy.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 6 p.m. ET on Dec. 8 with the news that the hearing will not be webcast after all, then again at 6:45 p.m. ET with the news that the committee had advanced Isaacman's nomination to the full Senate.

]]> <![CDATA[ Round 2: Watch Senate hearing for Jared Isaacman's re-nomination as NASA chief today ]]>

The U.S. Senate will hold a hearing to consider billionaire tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman's re-nomination for NASA chief on today (Dec. 3), and you can watch the action live.

The hearing, before the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, begins Wednesday at 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT).

It will stream live on the committee's website and on YouTube. Space.com will carry the feed as well, if (as expected) it's made available.

This will be the second such hearing for Jared Isaacman, a private astronaut who has funded and commanded two SpaceX missions to Earth orbit.

The first occurred in April and seemed to go well, setting Isaacman up for confirmation in early June. But on May 31, President Donald Trump abruptly pulled his nomination, citing Isaacman's past donations to Democratic political candidates and concerns about his relationship with SpaceX boss Elon Musk. (That relationship is purely professional and would not affect his activities as NASA chief, according to Isaacman.)

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

If the Senate confirms Isaacman, the founder of the payment-processing company Shift4, he will take the reins from Sean Duffy, who currently serves as the agency's acting administrator. Duffy is a former reality TV star who is also head of the Department of Transportation.

Isaacman won't be the only person appearing before the committee on Wednesday. The senators will also consider the nomination of Steven Haines to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/round-2-watch-senate-hearing-for-jared-isaacmans-re-nomination-as-nasa-chief-on-dec-3 DMejvAgu9mKQv8XfufKJ5i Tue, 02 Dec 2025 17:00:00 +0000 Wed, 03 Dec 2025 15:19:43 +0000 false false false

The U.S. Senate will hold a hearing to consider billionaire tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman's re-nomination for NASA chief on today (Dec. 3), and you can watch the action live.

The hearing, before the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, begins Wednesday at 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT).

It will stream live on the committee's website and on YouTube. Space.com will carry the feed as well, if (as expected) it's made available.

This will be the second such hearing for Jared Isaacman, a private astronaut who has funded and commanded two SpaceX missions to Earth orbit.

The first occurred in April and seemed to go well, setting Isaacman up for confirmation in early June. But on May 31, President Donald Trump abruptly pulled his nomination, citing Isaacman's past donations to Democratic political candidates and concerns about his relationship with SpaceX boss Elon Musk. (That relationship is purely professional and would not affect his activities as NASA chief, according to Isaacman.)

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

If the Senate confirms Isaacman, the founder of the payment-processing company Shift4, he will take the reins from Sean Duffy, who currently serves as the agency's acting administrator. Duffy is a former reality TV star who is also head of the Department of Transportation.

Isaacman won't be the only person appearing before the committee on Wednesday. The senators will also consider the nomination of Steven Haines to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis.

]]> <![CDATA[ Senate to hold hearing for billionaire Jared Isaacman's re-nomination as NASA chief on Dec. 3 ]]> Jared Isaacman will head back to Capitol Hill early next month.

The U.S. Senate's Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will hold a hearing on Dec. 3 to consider the nomination of the billionaire tech entrepreneur and private astronaut as NASA chief.

The event will begin at 10:00 a.m. EST (1500 GMT). You'll be able to watch it live; the hearing will stream on the committee's website and on YouTube.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

Isaacman, who founded the payments company Shift4, has been through this before: He went through a nomination hearing on April 9, 3.5 months after President Donald Trump first tapped him for the top NASA job.

Isaacman was set to be confirmed by Congress in early June, but Trump abruptly pulled his nomination on May 31, citing his past donations to Democratic politicians and supposed closeness to SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk.

Isaacman funded, organized and commanded two flights to Earth orbit using SpaceX rockets and capsules — Inspiration4 in September 2021 and Polaris Dawn in September 2024. But he has stressed that his relationship with Musk is a business one, and that he would not give SpaceX any preferential treatment should he be confirmed as NASA chief.

Trump had a change of heart on Nov. 4, announcing that Isaacman is his pick for NASA chief after all. If the nomination process goes smoothly this time around, Isaacman will take over for Acting Administrator Sean Duffy, who also leads the Department of Transportation.

Isaacman won't be the only person getting grilled by senators on Dec. 3. The committee will also consider the nomination of Steven Haines to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/senate-to-hold-hearing-for-billionaire-jared-isaacmans-re-nomination-as-nasa-chief-on-dec-3 MVjZKUvAqUcY5xu7gP8boS Wed, 19 Nov 2025 23:00:00 +0000 false false false

Jared Isaacman will head back to Capitol Hill early next month.

The U.S. Senate's Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will hold a hearing on Dec. 3 to consider the nomination of the billionaire tech entrepreneur and private astronaut as NASA chief.

The event will begin at 10:00 a.m. EST (1500 GMT). You'll be able to watch it live; the hearing will stream on the committee's website and on YouTube.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

Isaacman, who founded the payments company Shift4, has been through this before: He went through a nomination hearing on April 9, 3.5 months after President Donald Trump first tapped him for the top NASA job.

Isaacman was set to be confirmed by Congress in early June, but Trump abruptly pulled his nomination on May 31, citing his past donations to Democratic politicians and supposed closeness to SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk.

Isaacman funded, organized and commanded two flights to Earth orbit using SpaceX rockets and capsules — Inspiration4 in September 2021 and Polaris Dawn in September 2024. But he has stressed that his relationship with Musk is a business one, and that he would not give SpaceX any preferential treatment should he be confirmed as NASA chief.

Trump had a change of heart on Nov. 4, announcing that Isaacman is his pick for NASA chief after all. If the nomination process goes smoothly this time around, Isaacman will take over for Acting Administrator Sean Duffy, who also leads the Department of Transportation.

Isaacman won't be the only person getting grilled by senators on Dec. 3. The committee will also consider the nomination of Steven Haines to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis.

]]> <![CDATA[ Trump renominates billionaire Jared Isaacman for NASA chief in major reversal ]]> Jared Isaacman is in line to be NASA chief — again.

President Donald Trump just tapped the billionaire tech entrepreneur to lead the U.S. space agency, five months after pulling his nomination for the same post.

"Jared's passion for Space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and unlocking the new Space economy, make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new Era," Trump wrote Tuesday (Nov. 4) in a post on Truth Social, the social media platform he owns.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

That astronaut experience is extensive. Jared Isaacman, who founded the payments company Shift4, has organized, funded and commanded two private astronaut missions to Earth orbit, both of them using SpaceX hardware. On the second of those flights, called Polaris Dawn, he conducted the first-ever private spacewalk.

This will be Isaacman's second trip down nomination lane. Trump put him up for NASA chief this past January, and Isaacman looked set to be confirmed by Congress — until the president abruptly pulled his nomination on May 31, citing Isaacman's past donations to Democratic political candidates and supposedly close relationship with SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk.

Isaacman apparently isn't holding a grudge; he said he's ready to go through the process all over again.

"Thank you, Mr. President @POTUS, for this opportunity. It will be an honor to serve my country under your leadership," Isaacman said in a post on X, the social media platform that Musk owns, on Tuesday evening.

"The support from the space-loving community has been overwhelming. I am not sure how I earned the trust of so many, but I will do everything I can to live up to those expectations," he added.

NASA is currently led, in an acting capacity, by Sean Duffy, the former timber-sports champion and reality TV star who also serves as the Secretary of Transportation.

Duffy had been angling to hold on to the NASA job, according to media reports. But he struck a conciliatory and congratulatory tone in his own X post on Tuesday.

"Thank you @realDonaldTrump for the honor to lead @NASA. We’ve made giant leaps in our mission to return to the moon before China. It’s critical for our national security and national pride that we win the next space race. Congratulations to @rookisaacman. I wish him all the success and will ensure the transition is seamless," Duffy wrote.

Isaacman seems to enjoy widespread support from the space community, but his ascension to NASA chief is not a fait accompli — he still has to go through the confirmation process, which didn't end well last time. That confirmation process will likely be on hold due to the ongoing government shutdown, which has been underway since Oct. 1.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/trump-nominates-billionaire-jared-isaacman-for-nasa-chief-again z2xfMPcNQfsdH9jFLtTYij Wed, 05 Nov 2025 03:58:30 +0000 Wed, 05 Nov 2025 16:19:56 +0000 false false false

Jared Isaacman is in line to be NASA chief — again.

President Donald Trump just tapped the billionaire tech entrepreneur to lead the U.S. space agency, five months after pulling his nomination for the same post.

"Jared's passion for Space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and unlocking the new Space economy, make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new Era," Trump wrote Tuesday (Nov. 4) in a post on Truth Social, the social media platform he owns.

a man in a spacesuit leans out of a space capsule, with earth in the background

Polaris Dawn commander Jared Isaacman becomes the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

That astronaut experience is extensive. Jared Isaacman, who founded the payments company Shift4, has organized, funded and commanded two private astronaut missions to Earth orbit, both of them using SpaceX hardware. On the second of those flights, called Polaris Dawn, he conducted the first-ever private spacewalk.

This will be Isaacman's second trip down nomination lane. Trump put him up for NASA chief this past January, and Isaacman looked set to be confirmed by Congress — until the president abruptly pulled his nomination on May 31, citing Isaacman's past donations to Democratic political candidates and supposedly close relationship with SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk.

Isaacman apparently isn't holding a grudge; he said he's ready to go through the process all over again.

"Thank you, Mr. President @POTUS, for this opportunity. It will be an honor to serve my country under your leadership," Isaacman said in a post on X, the social media platform that Musk owns, on Tuesday evening.

"The support from the space-loving community has been overwhelming. I am not sure how I earned the trust of so many, but I will do everything I can to live up to those expectations," he added.

NASA is currently led, in an acting capacity, by Sean Duffy, the former timber-sports champion and reality TV star who also serves as the Secretary of Transportation.

Duffy had been angling to hold on to the NASA job, according to media reports. But he struck a conciliatory and congratulatory tone in his own X post on Tuesday.

"Thank you @realDonaldTrump for the honor to lead @NASA. We’ve made giant leaps in our mission to return to the moon before China. It’s critical for our national security and national pride that we win the next space race. Congratulations to @rookisaacman. I wish him all the success and will ensure the transition is seamless," Duffy wrote.

Isaacman seems to enjoy widespread support from the space community, but his ascension to NASA chief is not a fait accompli — he still has to go through the confirmation process, which didn't end well last time. That confirmation process will likely be on hold due to the ongoing government shutdown, which has been underway since Oct. 1.

]]> <![CDATA[ 'Sean Dummy': Why is Elon Musk attacking the acting NASA chief? ]]> Elon Musk is not a fan of NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy.

The SpaceX founder and CEO has hammered Duffy repeatedly on social media over the past few days, calling him "Sean Dummy" (which he later amended to "Sean 'Dangerously Stupid' Dummy") and claiming that Duffy "is trying to kill NASA."

Musk also posted the following poll question on X: "Should someone whose biggest claim to fame is climbing trees be running America's space program?" That's a nod to Duffy's lumberjack past; he was active in timber sports in his youth and held two world speed-climbing titles by the age of 30.

This barrage didn't come out of left field. It followed on the heels of Duffy's announcement that NASA will reopen competition for the Artemis 3 moon-landing contract, which SpaceX won in April 2021. The company plans to use a modified upper stage of its Starship megarocket for that mission, which will put astronauts down on the lunar surface for the first time since 1972. The current plan calls for Artemis 3 astronauts to launch atop a NASA Space Launch System rocket, then ride an Orion capsule to lunar orbit, where they'll meet up with Starship for the trip down.

Duffy, however, voiced concerns that Starship may not be ready on NASA's desired Artemis 3 timeline, which now features a 2028 launch target.

"I love SpaceX; it's an amazing company. The problem is, they're behind. They've pushed their timelines out, and we're in a race against China," Duffy said on Monday (Oct. 20) during an appearance on CNBC's "Squawk Box."

"The president and I want to get to the moon in this president's term, so I'm gonna open up the contract," he added. "I'm gonna let other space companies compete with SpaceX, like Blue Origin."

Musk did not seem happy about that. He responded by noting that Blue Origin has never delivered a "useful payload" to Earth orbit — something SpaceX has done hundreds of times — and then made a prediction: "SpaceX is moving like lightning compared to the rest of the space industry. Moreover, Starship will end up doing the whole moon mission. Mark my words."

Musk also responded in another, less substantive way, posting a meme on X asking Duffy why he is "gae."

Musk's beef with Duffy appears to extend beyond the Artemis 3 contract issue, however. The SpaceX chief has long backed fellow billionaire and private astronaut Jared Isaacman for NASA administrator — a post Isaacman was poised to secure until President Trump abruptly withdrew his nomination on May 31.

Trump himself nominated Isaacman but had a change of heart very late in the game, citing the tech entrepreneur's past donations to Democratic politicians and alleged close relationship with Musk. That decision resulted in Duffy taking the agency over in an acting capacity.

In a twist, Isaacman now appears to be back in the mix as a candidate for the top NASA job. But Duffy is keen to hold onto the position, according to both The Wall Street Journal and Ars Technica.

Both outlets also reported that Duffy may seek to fold NASA into the Department of Transportation, an agency also led by the former lumberjack and reality TV star. (Duffy was on the sixth season of MTV's "The Real World," which aired in 1997.)

Musk thinks this is a bad idea: He replied with the "100" emoji to a post by AstroForge CEO and founder Matt Gialich that reads, "No one wants this to happen. This would mark the beginning of the end for our nation's dominance in space."

And, in a post this morning (Oct. 22), Musk took the fight directly to Duffy yet again: "Having a NASA Administrator who knows literally ZERO about rockets & spacecraft undermines the American space program and endangers our astronauts."

The obvious but unsaid point of comparison is Isaacman, who funded, organized and commanded two private missions to Earth orbit, using SpaceX rockets and capsules. (Musk did distance himself from this comparison in another X post today, however, saying, "At this point, I am not advocating any particular candidate for NASA Administrator. I am just desperate for someone with a 3 digit IQ.")

Will Trump re-up Isaacman's nomination? Will Duffy get to take the "acting" modifier off his NASA job title? And how will Musk respond to any of these eventualities? Stay tuned; there could be much more drama ahead.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 3:28 p.m. ET on Oct. 22 to include a new X post from Musk, which reads, in part, "I am just desperate for someone with a 3 digit IQ."

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/sean-dummy-why-is-elon-musk-attacking-the-acting-nasa-chief xvhSD5V43RVenEbGVLV9vV Wed, 22 Oct 2025 18:38:23 +0000 Wed, 22 Oct 2025 19:29:11 +0000 false false false

Elon Musk is not a fan of NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy.

The SpaceX founder and CEO has hammered Duffy repeatedly on social media over the past few days, calling him "Sean Dummy" (which he later amended to "Sean 'Dangerously Stupid' Dummy") and claiming that Duffy "is trying to kill NASA."

Musk also posted the following poll question on X: "Should someone whose biggest claim to fame is climbing trees be running America's space program?" That's a nod to Duffy's lumberjack past; he was active in timber sports in his youth and held two world speed-climbing titles by the age of 30.

This barrage didn't come out of left field. It followed on the heels of Duffy's announcement that NASA will reopen competition for the Artemis 3 moon-landing contract, which SpaceX won in April 2021. The company plans to use a modified upper stage of its Starship megarocket for that mission, which will put astronauts down on the lunar surface for the first time since 1972. The current plan calls for Artemis 3 astronauts to launch atop a NASA Space Launch System rocket, then ride an Orion capsule to lunar orbit, where they'll meet up with Starship for the trip down.

Duffy, however, voiced concerns that Starship may not be ready on NASA's desired Artemis 3 timeline, which now features a 2028 launch target.

"I love SpaceX; it's an amazing company. The problem is, they're behind. They've pushed their timelines out, and we're in a race against China," Duffy said on Monday (Oct. 20) during an appearance on CNBC's "Squawk Box."

"The president and I want to get to the moon in this president's term, so I'm gonna open up the contract," he added. "I'm gonna let other space companies compete with SpaceX, like Blue Origin."

Musk did not seem happy about that. He responded by noting that Blue Origin has never delivered a "useful payload" to Earth orbit — something SpaceX has done hundreds of times — and then made a prediction: "SpaceX is moving like lightning compared to the rest of the space industry. Moreover, Starship will end up doing the whole moon mission. Mark my words."

Musk also responded in another, less substantive way, posting a meme on X asking Duffy why he is "gae."

Musk's beef with Duffy appears to extend beyond the Artemis 3 contract issue, however. The SpaceX chief has long backed fellow billionaire and private astronaut Jared Isaacman for NASA administrator — a post Isaacman was poised to secure until President Trump abruptly withdrew his nomination on May 31.

Trump himself nominated Isaacman but had a change of heart very late in the game, citing the tech entrepreneur's past donations to Democratic politicians and alleged close relationship with Musk. That decision resulted in Duffy taking the agency over in an acting capacity.

In a twist, Isaacman now appears to be back in the mix as a candidate for the top NASA job. But Duffy is keen to hold onto the position, according to both The Wall Street Journal and Ars Technica.

Both outlets also reported that Duffy may seek to fold NASA into the Department of Transportation, an agency also led by the former lumberjack and reality TV star. (Duffy was on the sixth season of MTV's "The Real World," which aired in 1997.)

Musk thinks this is a bad idea: He replied with the "100" emoji to a post by AstroForge CEO and founder Matt Gialich that reads, "No one wants this to happen. This would mark the beginning of the end for our nation's dominance in space."

And, in a post this morning (Oct. 22), Musk took the fight directly to Duffy yet again: "Having a NASA Administrator who knows literally ZERO about rockets & spacecraft undermines the American space program and endangers our astronauts."

The obvious but unsaid point of comparison is Isaacman, who funded, organized and commanded two private missions to Earth orbit, using SpaceX rockets and capsules. (Musk did distance himself from this comparison in another X post today, however, saying, "At this point, I am not advocating any particular candidate for NASA Administrator. I am just desperate for someone with a 3 digit IQ.")

Will Trump re-up Isaacman's nomination? Will Duffy get to take the "acting" modifier off his NASA job title? And how will Musk respond to any of these eventualities? Stay tuned; there could be much more drama ahead.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 3:28 p.m. ET on Oct. 22 to include a new X post from Musk, which reads, in part, "I am just desperate for someone with a 3 digit IQ."

]]> <![CDATA[ NASA'd too hard: The ultimate NASA trivia quiz ]]> NASA wasn't born with a rocket in its hand — it was forged in the heat of the Cold War, when the race to space became a global obsession.

Since its founding, the agency has transformed from a scrappy collection of engineers into the world’s most iconic space organization. But how well do you really know NASA's story?

This quiz will take you on a journey through NASA's greatest hits — and a few lesser-known moments too. From the Mercury and Gemini missions to the drama of Apollo 13, the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, and the robotic explorers roaming Mars, NASA's history is packed with daring feats and scientific firsts.

Whether you're a space buff or just curious about what goes on behind the launchpad, this quiz will challenge your cosmic IQ.

Try it out below and see how well you score!

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/nasad-too-hard-the-ultimate-nasa-trivia-quiz zeg5sy62kKiHQp3bgEiG4f Tue, 21 Oct 2025 13:31:39 +0000 false false false

NASA wasn't born with a rocket in its hand — it was forged in the heat of the Cold War, when the race to space became a global obsession.

Since its founding, the agency has transformed from a scrappy collection of engineers into the world’s most iconic space organization. But how well do you really know NASA's story?

This quiz will take you on a journey through NASA's greatest hits — and a few lesser-known moments too. From the Mercury and Gemini missions to the drama of Apollo 13, the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, and the robotic explorers roaming Mars, NASA's history is packed with daring feats and scientific firsts.

Whether you're a space buff or just curious about what goes on behind the launchpad, this quiz will challenge your cosmic IQ.

Try it out below and see how well you score!

]]> <![CDATA[ NASA begins push to slash workforce with more staff buyouts, early retirements as budget cuts loom ]]> NASA put out a new call urging its workforce to leave the agency this week with a new offer for employment buyouts as the U.S. space program faces huge budget cuts proposed by the Trump administration.

In memos sent to employees on Monday (June 9), NASA officials announced the rollout of a new early retirement and deferred resignation program that aims to cut positions from the space agency dramatically.

"NASA is continuing its phased approach to streamline its workforce and reduce its overall headcount," NASA spokesperson Cheryl Warner said in a statement. "This affords employees the opportunity to depart while ensuring the agency remains fully capable to pursue its mission. Eligibility for these programs will vary depending on each employee’s individual situation."

The efforts — which include a deferred resignation program, voluntary early retirement authority and voluntary separation incentive program — come on the heels of large proposed budget cuts for NASA in 2026 by the Trump administration. Those cuts aim to reduce NASA's overall budget by 24% and its workforce from its current 17,391 employees down to 11,853, a 32% reduction. The budget request is still under review by Congress and not yet implemented.

"There is no target number or percentage associated with this effort, and it is not tied to DOGE," Warner told Space.com via email in response to questions referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, an effort to cut government spending that was led until recently by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.

The DOGE team put out similar calls for deferred resignations earlier this year. Musk left his temporary White House role on May 31, and his relationship with Trump has since soured over issues related to the president's "Big Beautiful Bill" platform.

A group of people sit around a large table.

Key decisions are being made that will shape NASA's space science program (Image credit: The National Academies)

NASA employees have until July 25 to decide whether to take part in any of the staff reduction programs. Anyone joining the Deferred Resignation Program would likely cease work shortly thereafter and be paid through Jan. 9, 2026, NASA officials said.

"Employees will be eligible to begin administrative leave within seven to 14 days of signing their separation agreement, with most participants ending their employment with the agency by Jan. 9, 2026," Warner wrote. "In a few circumstances, due to critical need, the agency may approve delaying an employee’s administrative leave start date until April 1, 2026, and end their employment with the agency no later than Sept. 30, 2026."

These new NASA efforts follow several rounds of departures from other agencies (nearly 75,000 government workers have taken deferred resignation offers overall) and staffing changes at key agency centers, such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California, which just ended its remote work policy for nearly 5,500 employees, with most staff to having to return to the office work or leave. (JPL, NASA's lead center for robotic planetary exploration, is managed by the California Institute of Technology for the agency.)

DOGE efforts have also led to layoffs for thousands of probationary employees across NASA and other government agencies, according to media reports.

RELATED STORIES

 —  'What a waste:' US scientists decry Trump's 47% cuts to NASA science budget

 — Trump administration proposes slashing NASA budget by 24%

 — Trump's proposed 2026 NASA budget cuts will cede our space 'position of leadership to other nations', top scientists say

This week, the space agency began consolidating its social media accounts associated with many of its most visible space missions, such as the Mars rover Perseverance, International Space Station and others, as part of a restructuring measure for how it shares its discoveries with the public.

"With more than 300 agency accounts across 15 platforms, NASA is consolidating our social media footprint to be more focused, allowing us to fulfill our responsibility to share NASA’s story widely and cohesively," NASA Press Secretary Bethany Stevens said on social media.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/nasa-begins-push-to-slash-workforce-with-more-staff-buyouts-early-retirements-as-budget-cuts-loom gEwxwV6S2z3SGDiuFhvi7d Wed, 11 Jun 2025 19:00:00 +0000 false false false

NASA put out a new call urging its workforce to leave the agency this week with a new offer for employment buyouts as the U.S. space program faces huge budget cuts proposed by the Trump administration.

In memos sent to employees on Monday (June 9), NASA officials announced the rollout of a new early retirement and deferred resignation program that aims to cut positions from the space agency dramatically.

"NASA is continuing its phased approach to streamline its workforce and reduce its overall headcount," NASA spokesperson Cheryl Warner said in a statement. "This affords employees the opportunity to depart while ensuring the agency remains fully capable to pursue its mission. Eligibility for these programs will vary depending on each employee’s individual situation."

The efforts — which include a deferred resignation program, voluntary early retirement authority and voluntary separation incentive program — come on the heels of large proposed budget cuts for NASA in 2026 by the Trump administration. Those cuts aim to reduce NASA's overall budget by 24% and its workforce from its current 17,391 employees down to 11,853, a 32% reduction. The budget request is still under review by Congress and not yet implemented.

"There is no target number or percentage associated with this effort, and it is not tied to DOGE," Warner told Space.com via email in response to questions referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, an effort to cut government spending that was led until recently by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.

The DOGE team put out similar calls for deferred resignations earlier this year. Musk left his temporary White House role on May 31, and his relationship with Trump has since soured over issues related to the president's "Big Beautiful Bill" platform.

A group of people sit around a large table.

Key decisions are being made that will shape NASA's space science program (Image credit: The National Academies)

NASA employees have until July 25 to decide whether to take part in any of the staff reduction programs. Anyone joining the Deferred Resignation Program would likely cease work shortly thereafter and be paid through Jan. 9, 2026, NASA officials said.

"Employees will be eligible to begin administrative leave within seven to 14 days of signing their separation agreement, with most participants ending their employment with the agency by Jan. 9, 2026," Warner wrote. "In a few circumstances, due to critical need, the agency may approve delaying an employee’s administrative leave start date until April 1, 2026, and end their employment with the agency no later than Sept. 30, 2026."

These new NASA efforts follow several rounds of departures from other agencies (nearly 75,000 government workers have taken deferred resignation offers overall) and staffing changes at key agency centers, such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California, which just ended its remote work policy for nearly 5,500 employees, with most staff to having to return to the office work or leave. (JPL, NASA's lead center for robotic planetary exploration, is managed by the California Institute of Technology for the agency.)

DOGE efforts have also led to layoffs for thousands of probationary employees across NASA and other government agencies, according to media reports.

RELATED STORIES

 —  'What a waste:' US scientists decry Trump's 47% cuts to NASA science budget

 — Trump administration proposes slashing NASA budget by 24%

 — Trump's proposed 2026 NASA budget cuts will cede our space 'position of leadership to other nations', top scientists say

This week, the space agency began consolidating its social media accounts associated with many of its most visible space missions, such as the Mars rover Perseverance, International Space Station and others, as part of a restructuring measure for how it shares its discoveries with the public.

"With more than 300 agency accounts across 15 platforms, NASA is consolidating our social media footprint to be more focused, allowing us to fulfill our responsibility to share NASA’s story widely and cohesively," NASA Press Secretary Bethany Stevens said on social media.

]]> <![CDATA[ What does the NASA administrator do? ]]> This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

Wendy Whitman Cobb is Professor of Strategy and Security Studies at the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies (SAASS).

Leaders of NASA sit in an awkward position. While they are the head of a widely recognized organization, they’re often not the most famous individual in the agency. More people probably know the names of Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, the astronauts currently "stranded" on the International Space Station, than Bill Nelson, the current NASA administrator.

Astronauts might be the people most closely associated with NASA, but administrators are arguably more integral to getting programs off the ground.

As a space policy expert, I’ve seen the impact that individual NASA leaders can have on NASA’s success. They play a vital role in deciding what NASA does and how it does it, and they also help build political support for space exploration.

The role of the NASA administrator

NASA is an independent government bureaucracy, meaning that it does not fall under one of the cabinet departments – like the Department of State. As such, the leader of NASA is an administrator rather than a secretary.

Although the name differs, a NASA administrator has similar duties and responsibilities as a cabinet secretary. They help make decisions about which major programs and policies should be pursued and how they’re carried out. NASA administrators work with partners in industry, including the commercial space industry. They also represent NASA while presenting to Congress and during diplomatic relations with other countries.

NASA administrators are also accountable to elected officials. Administrators are appointed by the president but must be confirmed by the Senate. Congress has a great deal to say about the budget that NASA gets each year. They also must authorize major programs, like the Artemis program, which aims to return the U.S. and its partners to the moon.

Although major decisions like these are often out of their hands, NASA administrators still have a lot of influence behind the scenes. James Webb, NASA’s second administrator, who held the office between 1961 and 1968, is often credited as being integral in maintaining political support for the Apollo program.

a man in a suit sits at a table covered in microphones in a large wood-paneled room

Current NASA administrator Bill Nelson at a Senate hearing in 2024. (Image credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Dan Goldin, the longest-serving NASA administrator, helped save the International Space Station from cancellation in the early 1990s by convincing the Clinton administration to invite Russia’s participation.

As administrator in the early 2000s, Mike Griffin helped jump-start the commercial space industry by instituting the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program. This program provided funding to companies who would first send cargo to the International Space Station, and then later, astronauts.

However, not all administrators are as productive as Webb, Goldin or Griffin. Richard Truly was fired from the post by George H.W. Bush in 1992 after disagreeing with the administration’s 1989 proposal to return the U.S. to the Moon.

Charles Bolden found controversy when he told Al-Jazeera that President Barack Obama instructed him to make outreach to Muslim countries one of NASA’s priorities.

Both Truly and Bolden were astronauts before becoming administrator. But that doesn’t mean that former astronauts are somehow worse in the position than people coming from other backgrounds. NASA administrators have historically had a wide variety of backgrounds, including scientists, engineers and even former members of Congress.

The current NASA administrator, Bill Nelson, is both a former senator and a former astronaut, having gone to space on the shuttle Columbia in January 1986.

Major questions ahead

No matter the administrator, the coming years will bring big decisions for whoever is next.

With the recent announcement that the around-the-moon mission of Artemis 2 is delayed until spring of 2026, NASA still has much work to do in its Artemis program. Major issues remain to be addressed with the crew vehicle, including problems with the capsule’s heat shield and electronic systems.

Further, the success of commercial space companies like SpaceX means there will be more pressure on NASA to find ways to reduce costs by leveraging the services of commercial companies.

More broadly, many other countries are looking to how the U.S. is operating in space. Aside from what some see as a new space race with China, questions about space debris, space traffic management and space resources will involve cooperation with other countries and will require administrator involvement.

RELATED STORIES:

 —  Who is Jared Isaacman, Trump's pick for NASA chief?

 — Trump picks billionaire private SpaceX astronaut Jared Isaacman to lead NASA

 — NASA delays Artemis missions again. What could this mean for the moon, Mars and space leadership?

Finally, the NASA administrator will have to contend with a recurring issue: fewer resources. Historically, NASA has been appropriated less money than necessary to carry out all the things it has been charged to do.

This situation leads to hard decisions about what kinds of missions to support. Space science and robotic exploration typically lose out to things like human spaceflight.

Even though the next administrator will need to make hard decisions, the next few years will be full of excitement as the U.S. and others pursue increasingly ambitious goals.

Originally published at The Conversation.

]]> https://www.space.com/space-exploration/missions/what-does-the-nasa-administrator-do KitKLitMPYunUk7tJehG9G Wed, 25 Dec 2024 15:00:00 +0000 false false false

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

Wendy Whitman Cobb is Professor of Strategy and Security Studies at the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies (SAASS).

Leaders of NASA sit in an awkward position. While they are the head of a widely recognized organization, they’re often not the most famous individual in the agency. More people probably know the names of Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, the astronauts currently "stranded" on the International Space Station, than Bill Nelson, the current NASA administrator.

Astronauts might be the people most closely associated with NASA, but administrators are arguably more integral to getting programs off the ground.

As a space policy expert, I’ve seen the impact that individual NASA leaders can have on NASA’s success. They play a vital role in deciding what NASA does and how it does it, and they also help build political support for space exploration.

The role of the NASA administrator

NASA is an independent government bureaucracy, meaning that it does not fall under one of the cabinet departments – like the Department of State. As such, the leader of NASA is an administrator rather than a secretary.

Although the name differs, a NASA administrator has similar duties and responsibilities as a cabinet secretary. They help make decisions about which major programs and policies should be pursued and how they’re carried out. NASA administrators work with partners in industry, including the commercial space industry. They also represent NASA while presenting to Congress and during diplomatic relations with other countries.

NASA administrators are also accountable to elected officials. Administrators are appointed by the president but must be confirmed by the Senate. Congress has a great deal to say about the budget that NASA gets each year. They also must authorize major programs, like the Artemis program, which aims to return the U.S. and its partners to the moon.

Although major decisions like these are often out of their hands, NASA administrators still have a lot of influence behind the scenes. James Webb, NASA’s second administrator, who held the office between 1961 and 1968, is often credited as being integral in maintaining political support for the Apollo program.

a man in a suit sits at a table covered in microphones in a large wood-paneled room

Current NASA administrator Bill Nelson at a Senate hearing in 2024. (Image credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Dan Goldin, the longest-serving NASA administrator, helped save the International Space Station from cancellation in the early 1990s by convincing the Clinton administration to invite Russia’s participation.

As administrator in the early 2000s, Mike Griffin helped jump-start the commercial space industry by instituting the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program. This program provided funding to companies who would first send cargo to the International Space Station, and then later, astronauts.

However, not all administrators are as productive as Webb, Goldin or Griffin. Richard Truly was fired from the post by George H.W. Bush in 1992 after disagreeing with the administration’s 1989 proposal to return the U.S. to the Moon.

Charles Bolden found controversy when he told Al-Jazeera that President Barack Obama instructed him to make outreach to Muslim countries one of NASA’s priorities.

Both Truly and Bolden were astronauts before becoming administrator. But that doesn’t mean that former astronauts are somehow worse in the position than people coming from other backgrounds. NASA administrators have historically had a wide variety of backgrounds, including scientists, engineers and even former members of Congress.

The current NASA administrator, Bill Nelson, is both a former senator and a former astronaut, having gone to space on the shuttle Columbia in January 1986.

Major questions ahead

No matter the administrator, the coming years will bring big decisions for whoever is next.

With the recent announcement that the around-the-moon mission of Artemis 2 is delayed until spring of 2026, NASA still has much work to do in its Artemis program. Major issues remain to be addressed with the crew vehicle, including problems with the capsule’s heat shield and electronic systems.

Further, the success of commercial space companies like SpaceX means there will be more pressure on NASA to find ways to reduce costs by leveraging the services of commercial companies.

More broadly, many other countries are looking to how the U.S. is operating in space. Aside from what some see as a new space race with China, questions about space debris, space traffic management and space resources will involve cooperation with other countries and will require administrator involvement.

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Finally, the NASA administrator will have to contend with a recurring issue: fewer resources. Historically, NASA has been appropriated less money than necessary to carry out all the things it has been charged to do.

This situation leads to hard decisions about what kinds of missions to support. Space science and robotic exploration typically lose out to things like human spaceflight.

Even though the next administrator will need to make hard decisions, the next few years will be full of excitement as the U.S. and others pursue increasingly ambitious goals.

Originally published at The Conversation.

]]> <![CDATA[ James Webb: Early NASA Visionary ]]> In 2019, a massive telescope will launch from the Earth, providing an in-depth view of space and bringing into focus objects older and farther away than we have ever seen before. The instrument will bear the name of James Webb, a champion of the early space program, who saw further ahead than many other people at the time. 

"Many believe that James E. Webb … did more for science than perhaps any other government official, and that it is only fitting that the Next Generation Space Telescope would be named after him," says a NASA biography of Webb, who ran the space agency from 1961 to 1968.

Background

James Edwin Webb was born Oct. 7, 1906, in Tally Ho, North Carolina. He was the second of five children born to John and Sarah Webb. In 1938, he married Patsy Aiken Douglas and the couple had two children, Sarah Gorham and James Edwin Jr.

Webb attended the University of North Carolina, receiving a degree in education. He served as a pilot for the Marine Corps from 1930 to 1932. In 1934, he began to study law at George Washington University, and was admitted to the Bar of the District of Columbia in 1936.

For the next eight years, he served in various government positions for North Carolina leaders, as well as corporate roles in the Sperry Gyroscope Company of New York. In 1944, he re-entered the Marine Corps for World War II.

After the war, Webb returned to Washington and served in several positions. President Harry Truman asked Webb to serve as under secretary of state. At the end of the Truman administration, Webb left Washington to work with the Kerr-McGee Oil Corp. in Oklahoma.

'We had to move'

Only a few years later, Webb was contacted by the White House to meet with Vice President Lyndon Johnson about leading the newly formed National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). After the Soviet Union put the first human-built satellite, Sputnik, into orbit, the United States entered a space race. However, Webb did not think he was qualified to lead NASA.

"It seemed to me that someone who knew more about rocketry, about space, would be a better man for the job," Webb said during an interview as part of an oral history project sponsored by the Lyndon B. Johnson Library. But President John F. Kennedy disagreed, arguing that the position required more policy than science.

"President Kennedy said, 'I want you for this reason,'" Webb said. "And I've never said no to any president who has asked me to do things."

On Feb. 14, 1961, Webb became the second administrator of NASA. Only three months later, Kennedy announced his desire to put a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth by the end of the decade.

During his first presentation to Kennedy, prior to the president's announcement, Webb requested over $300 million dollars to increase the work done on Saturn booster rockets, with the aim of putting an astronaut into space.

"Kennedy approved the booster side; he did not approve the spacecraft side," Webb said.

Then, in April 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth.

"Gagarin's flight, coming after the interval since Sputnik, and with the image that Russia could in fact produce the first manned flight ... put a strong impulse on building some additional booster power," Webb said. Funding was revisited and increased.

"After Gagarin's flight, [Johnson] felt that we just simply couldn't stand still. We had to move," Webb said.

Sending astronauts to the moon

Under Webb's tenure, the Gemini program picked up and the Apollo program began. Humans began to spend time in space. 

"We didn't feel sure that we could win it, but we felt sure we could compete," Webb said.

But the new NASA administrator didn't focus solely on the immediate competition with Russia.

According to NASA, "Webb believed that the space program was more than a political race. He believed that NASA had to strike a balance between human spaceflight and science because such a combination would serve as a catalyst for strengthening the nation's universities and aerospace industry."

Under Webb's leadership, NASA built up Cape Kennedy in Florida, where rockets could safely attempt to launch into space. They acquired a large plant in New Orleans to test some of the larger boosters. They set up Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, to build some of the large manned spaceflights. 

This buildup of the south led some to criticize the new organization for favoring what was, after all, Webb's home region of the United States. But Webb claims that he did not bend to political pressure.

"The basic reason was to get the space program done in the most effective way possible, and to build scientific, engineering, and managerial strength for a long time in the future," Webb said.

"We were not just constructing the fastest, quickest way to get a few payloads into orbit. We were building permanently."

While some senators claimed to have won locations for their state, Webb said he did not factor in political ramifications. "I said, if it had been subject to political influence, it would be in Boston, because that's where the most pressure came from," he said.

Webb also focused on building up resources outside the government, strengthening universities and private programs. "The mandate in the law was not to build a strong NASA but to increase the competence of the United States to deal with scientific and technical matters in aeronautics and space," he said.

During Webb's tenure, NASA invested in the development of robotic spacecraft and sent scientific probes to Mars and Venus. By the time he retired, NASA had launched more than 75 space science missions to study the stars, the sun, the Milky Way, the moon and the environment around Earth. America's first human flight and first orbital flight came under Webb's tenure, as did the first two-man flight and the first human walk in space.

Webb "enhanced the role of scientists in key roles," NASA reports. "He gave them greater control in the selection process of science missions and he created the NASA University Program, which established grants for space research, funded the construction of new laboratories at universities and provided fellowships for graduate students."

When disaster strikes

On Jan. 27, 1967, astronauts Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee were killed during a test of the Apollo 1 capsule.

"We've always known that something like this was going to happen sooner than later," Webb said in an interview. "Who would have thought the first tragedy would be on the ground."

Webb asked President Johnson to allow NASA to conduct its own examination, which it did, presenting the results of the investigation to the public. Webb presented the findings to various congressional committees, deflecting much of the blame onto himself.

"While he was personally tarred with the disaster, the space agency's image and popular support was largely undamaged," according to a NASA biography.

As the Johnson presidency came to a close, Webb made the decision to step down as the administrator of NASA. In his interview with the LBJ oral project, he said he wanted there to be a vacancy to allow the next president to assign an administrator of his own choosing, though he worked to establish continuity in the agency's leadership.

Webb stepped down as NASA administrator on Oct. 7, 1968. He remained in Washington to serve on various advisory boards, including as a regent of the Smithsonian Institution.

Only a few months later, Apollo 11 landed the first human astronauts on the surface of the moon. John E. Pike, director of the Space Policy Project at the Federation of American Scientists, later said Webb played a key role.

"The reason we got to the moon before the Russians was they didn't have anybody to pull it together. The critical difference was we outmanaged them," Pike said.

Webb's role was visible in both the 1998 miniseries "From the Earth to the Moon" and the 2016 movie "Hidden Figures."

Webb died on March 27, 1992, and was buried at Arlington Cemetery.

The Next Generation Space Telescope

As early as 1965, Webb wrote that a major space telescope, then known as the Large Space Telescope, should become a major NASA effort. It would be decades before the project began.

In 1996, NASA began construction on a large space telescope, which has been named the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). It is often described as the scientific successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. However, JWST will not replace Hubble, which is still in operation. The two instruments complement one another, but they are not identical.

Instead, JWST will be able to see objects older and farther away than previous instruments, looking deeper in the infrared than Hubble is capable. While Hubble has a single 7.9-foot (2.4 meters) mirror, JWST has 18 hexagonal mirror segments with a combined size of 21 feet 4 inches (6.5 meters).

Launch for JWST has been recently pushed back to spring of 2019.

"It is fitting that Hubble's successor be named in honor of James Webb," NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe said in a statement. "Thanks to his efforts, we got our first glimpses at the dramatic landscape of outer space. He took our nation on its first voyages of exploration, turning our imagination into reality. Indeed, he laid the foundations at NASA for one of the most successful periods of astronomical discovery. As a result, we're rewriting the textbooks today with the help of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the James Webb Telescope."

Follow Nola Taylor Redd at @NolaTRedd, Facebook, or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+.

Additional resources

]]> https://www.space.com/38870-james-webb-biography.html CHHuVmQn2tFpm6gcRTSQJa Wed, 22 Nov 2017 02:49:15 +0000 Wed, 15 Dec 2021 16:37:27 +0000 false false false

In 2019, a massive telescope will launch from the Earth, providing an in-depth view of space and bringing into focus objects older and farther away than we have ever seen before. The instrument will bear the name of James Webb, a champion of the early space program, who saw further ahead than many other people at the time. 

"Many believe that James E. Webb … did more for science than perhaps any other government official, and that it is only fitting that the Next Generation Space Telescope would be named after him," says a NASA biography of Webb, who ran the space agency from 1961 to 1968.

Background

James Edwin Webb was born Oct. 7, 1906, in Tally Ho, North Carolina. He was the second of five children born to John and Sarah Webb. In 1938, he married Patsy Aiken Douglas and the couple had two children, Sarah Gorham and James Edwin Jr.

Webb attended the University of North Carolina, receiving a degree in education. He served as a pilot for the Marine Corps from 1930 to 1932. In 1934, he began to study law at George Washington University, and was admitted to the Bar of the District of Columbia in 1936.

For the next eight years, he served in various government positions for North Carolina leaders, as well as corporate roles in the Sperry Gyroscope Company of New York. In 1944, he re-entered the Marine Corps for World War II.

After the war, Webb returned to Washington and served in several positions. President Harry Truman asked Webb to serve as under secretary of state. At the end of the Truman administration, Webb left Washington to work with the Kerr-McGee Oil Corp. in Oklahoma.

'We had to move'

Only a few years later, Webb was contacted by the White House to meet with Vice President Lyndon Johnson about leading the newly formed National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). After the Soviet Union put the first human-built satellite, Sputnik, into orbit, the United States entered a space race. However, Webb did not think he was qualified to lead NASA.

"It seemed to me that someone who knew more about rocketry, about space, would be a better man for the job," Webb said during an interview as part of an oral history project sponsored by the Lyndon B. Johnson Library. But President John F. Kennedy disagreed, arguing that the position required more policy than science.

"President Kennedy said, 'I want you for this reason,'" Webb said. "And I've never said no to any president who has asked me to do things."

On Feb. 14, 1961, Webb became the second administrator of NASA. Only three months later, Kennedy announced his desire to put a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth by the end of the decade.

During his first presentation to Kennedy, prior to the president's announcement, Webb requested over $300 million dollars to increase the work done on Saturn booster rockets, with the aim of putting an astronaut into space.

"Kennedy approved the booster side; he did not approve the spacecraft side," Webb said.

Then, in April 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth.

"Gagarin's flight, coming after the interval since Sputnik, and with the image that Russia could in fact produce the first manned flight ... put a strong impulse on building some additional booster power," Webb said. Funding was revisited and increased.

"After Gagarin's flight, [Johnson] felt that we just simply couldn't stand still. We had to move," Webb said.

Sending astronauts to the moon

Under Webb's tenure, the Gemini program picked up and the Apollo program began. Humans began to spend time in space. 

"We didn't feel sure that we could win it, but we felt sure we could compete," Webb said.

But the new NASA administrator didn't focus solely on the immediate competition with Russia.

According to NASA, "Webb believed that the space program was more than a political race. He believed that NASA had to strike a balance between human spaceflight and science because such a combination would serve as a catalyst for strengthening the nation's universities and aerospace industry."

Under Webb's leadership, NASA built up Cape Kennedy in Florida, where rockets could safely attempt to launch into space. They acquired a large plant in New Orleans to test some of the larger boosters. They set up Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, to build some of the large manned spaceflights. 

This buildup of the south led some to criticize the new organization for favoring what was, after all, Webb's home region of the United States. But Webb claims that he did not bend to political pressure.

"The basic reason was to get the space program done in the most effective way possible, and to build scientific, engineering, and managerial strength for a long time in the future," Webb said.

"We were not just constructing the fastest, quickest way to get a few payloads into orbit. We were building permanently."

While some senators claimed to have won locations for their state, Webb said he did not factor in political ramifications. "I said, if it had been subject to political influence, it would be in Boston, because that's where the most pressure came from," he said.

Webb also focused on building up resources outside the government, strengthening universities and private programs. "The mandate in the law was not to build a strong NASA but to increase the competence of the United States to deal with scientific and technical matters in aeronautics and space," he said.

During Webb's tenure, NASA invested in the development of robotic spacecraft and sent scientific probes to Mars and Venus. By the time he retired, NASA had launched more than 75 space science missions to study the stars, the sun, the Milky Way, the moon and the environment around Earth. America's first human flight and first orbital flight came under Webb's tenure, as did the first two-man flight and the first human walk in space.

Webb "enhanced the role of scientists in key roles," NASA reports. "He gave them greater control in the selection process of science missions and he created the NASA University Program, which established grants for space research, funded the construction of new laboratories at universities and provided fellowships for graduate students."

When disaster strikes

On Jan. 27, 1967, astronauts Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee were killed during a test of the Apollo 1 capsule.

"We've always known that something like this was going to happen sooner than later," Webb said in an interview. "Who would have thought the first tragedy would be on the ground."

Webb asked President Johnson to allow NASA to conduct its own examination, which it did, presenting the results of the investigation to the public. Webb presented the findings to various congressional committees, deflecting much of the blame onto himself.

"While he was personally tarred with the disaster, the space agency's image and popular support was largely undamaged," according to a NASA biography.

As the Johnson presidency came to a close, Webb made the decision to step down as the administrator of NASA. In his interview with the LBJ oral project, he said he wanted there to be a vacancy to allow the next president to assign an administrator of his own choosing, though he worked to establish continuity in the agency's leadership.

Webb stepped down as NASA administrator on Oct. 7, 1968. He remained in Washington to serve on various advisory boards, including as a regent of the Smithsonian Institution.

Only a few months later, Apollo 11 landed the first human astronauts on the surface of the moon. John E. Pike, director of the Space Policy Project at the Federation of American Scientists, later said Webb played a key role.

"The reason we got to the moon before the Russians was they didn't have anybody to pull it together. The critical difference was we outmanaged them," Pike said.

Webb's role was visible in both the 1998 miniseries "From the Earth to the Moon" and the 2016 movie "Hidden Figures."

Webb died on March 27, 1992, and was buried at Arlington Cemetery.

The Next Generation Space Telescope

As early as 1965, Webb wrote that a major space telescope, then known as the Large Space Telescope, should become a major NASA effort. It would be decades before the project began.

In 1996, NASA began construction on a large space telescope, which has been named the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). It is often described as the scientific successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. However, JWST will not replace Hubble, which is still in operation. The two instruments complement one another, but they are not identical.

Instead, JWST will be able to see objects older and farther away than previous instruments, looking deeper in the infrared than Hubble is capable. While Hubble has a single 7.9-foot (2.4 meters) mirror, JWST has 18 hexagonal mirror segments with a combined size of 21 feet 4 inches (6.5 meters).

Launch for JWST has been recently pushed back to spring of 2019.

"It is fitting that Hubble's successor be named in honor of James Webb," NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe said in a statement. "Thanks to his efforts, we got our first glimpses at the dramatic landscape of outer space. He took our nation on its first voyages of exploration, turning our imagination into reality. Indeed, he laid the foundations at NASA for one of the most successful periods of astronomical discovery. As a result, we're rewriting the textbooks today with the help of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the James Webb Telescope."

Follow Nola Taylor Redd at @NolaTRedd, Facebook, or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+.

Additional resources

]]>