Cape Canaveral, Florida – CAPE CANAVERAL, FL (AP) — Billionaire astronaut Jared Isaacman urged senators on Wednesday to take quick action on it Try to lead NASAafter being extracted and then re-nominated by President Donald Trump.
Isaacman He appeared before the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee in Washington eight months later His first nomination session. The technology entrepreneur, who has flown into orbit twice with SpaceX, stressed the need for “full-time leadership” at NASA as the space agency prepares to send… Astronauts return to the moon Early next year.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been acting NASA administrator since the summer.
Isaacman told the committee headed by Senator Ted Cruz of Texas that returning astronauts to the moon for the first time in more than 50 years would be a “difficult endeavor, to say the least.”
Early next year, NASA aims to tour the moon for four astronauts. They won’t land on the moon; This will happen in another mission. The goal is to beat the Chinese there by the end of the decade.
“This is not a time to delay, but a time to act because if we fall behind — if we make a mistake — we may never catch up, and the consequences could change the balance of power here on Earth,” Isaacman told the committee.
Cruz agreed. “NASA can’t take its eye off the ball,” he said, referring to China’s impending plans for the moon. “The United States must remain the undisputed leader in space exploration.”
Isaacman was days away from being confirmed by the Senate as NASA’s 15th administrator when Trump withdrew his nomination in May. This move came shortly after Trump’s dispute with Elon Musk, head of SpaceX. The president renominated Isaacman last month.
Cruz said Isaacman’s second appearance is “a bit like Groundhog Day” and hopes it will be confirmed by the end of the year.
The 42-year-old founder of payment processing company Shift4 made the world’s first private spacewalk last fall. He funded both of his space missions. Several astronauts were present at the hearing, including some of Isaacman’s crewmates.
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