President-elect Donald TrumpNominatedBillionaire entrepreneur and private space traveler Jared Isaacman will be the next NASA administrator. This came as a surprise to many, as Isaacman was not on anyone's shortlist. However, upon closer inspection, this decision was not surprising.
president-elect trumpsaid“Jared's passion for space, experience as an astronaut, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unraveling the mysteries of space, and driving a new space economy have led him to lead NASA into a bold new era. He is the ideal person to lead the way.”
Isaacmananswered“We inspire you and my children to see possibilities and dream. Americans will walk on the moon and Mars, and in doing so we will make life better on Earth.” .”
Reaction to Isaacman's nomination was almost universally positive.
“Jared's vision for pushing boundaries, combined with his track record of success in private industry, will lead NASA into a bold new era of exploration,” said Jim Bridenstine, NASA Administrator during President Trump's first term. He is positioned as the ideal candidate to lead the way.” And discovered. ”
Overview of Ars TechnicaLooking back on Isaacman's career to date. He founded the online payments company Shift4 in his parents' basement at the age of 16 and became a billionaire. He is also the owner of Drakon International, which trains military pilots. Isaacman also discussed space policy vision at a recent meeting.Space Power Conference.
Isaacman is famous for organizing and flying two commercial spaceflights using SpaceX's Crew Dragon. inspiration 4a fundraiser for St. Jude Children's Cancer Research Hospital in September 2021. Polaris DawnIn September, the Space Special feature on commercial extravehicular activities.
Mr. Isaacman should go through a verification process. He has the right combination of business and space experience that NASA needs right now. He will appear on the Senate Commerce Committee, chaired by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a great supporter of both NASA and the commercial sector.
After Isaacman becomes NASA administrator, there will be a lot of work to do to rebuild the agency and enable humans to go into space.
Isaacman needs to get NASAGet commercial partner relationships back on track. Space agencies are backing away a bit and starting to overly micromanage fixed price projects.
NASA has developed a new planfor the next two Artemis flights. Artemis II will fly in April 2026, and Artemis III, the first manned moon landing in decades, is scheduled for mid-2027. NASA has discovered a workaround for the heat shield problem that occurred during Artemis I.
Isaacman will want to give his own assessment of the project, which is progressing slowly and slowly.
This schedule relies entirely on the Space Launch System, which is expensive and difficult to operate. The Space Launch System is a launch vehicle that costs $4 billion to launch and flies only once every few years, making it unsustainable if we want to open the Moon and Mars to human exploration. Ars Technica's profile of Isaacman suggests that the era of space launch systems is nearing its end. But when will it go away and what will replace it?
One idea would be to allow NASA's program to move forward while working on commercial alternatives to get people to the moon and back. The Ars Technica article says that a commercial heavy-lift carrier such as the New Glenn or Falcon Heavy could launch Orion, launch Vulcan Centaur, and then use the Centaur stage to carry Orion the rest of the way to lunar orbit. is proposed. Another option is to use Starship to transport people and cargo directly from Earth to the Moon.
Other programs Isaacman should keep an eye on are: Axiom Extravehicular Activity Suit, Luna Gateway Station and VIPER roverwas canceled in July. If we're going to return to the moon anytime soon, we'll have to deal with everything.
Isaacman once proposed a second mission for Polaris.To maintain the aging Hubble Space Telescope. NASA vetoed the mission, but now that Isaacman has become NASA administrator, it may be reinstated.
Isaacman should be approved as soon as possible so he can begin full-time work as NASA administrator. Using NASA to successfully complete the great mission of making humanity a multiplanetary species will require the full support of Congress, the White House, and the commercial space sector.
Mark R. Whittington writes,Why is it difficult to return to the moon?Similarly “To the moon, Mars and beyond”, and more recently”Why will America return to the moon?” He blogs at:Karma John's Corner.
