Latest news with #NationalAeronauticsandSpaceAdministration
See - Sada Elbalad
3 days ago
- Business
- See - Sada Elbalad
Trump Withdraws Jared Isaacman's Nomination to Lead NASA
Israa Farhan Former US President Donald Trump has officially withdrawn the nomination of billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to head the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The move comes amid reports that Isaacman's past political donations to prominent Democrats may have influenced the decision. Isaacman, a known ally of SpaceX founder Elon Musk, was originally nominated by Trump on December 4, 2024. In April 2025, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation recommended his appointment, indicating a likely confirmation. However, Trump announced on Sunday through his social media platform, Truth Social, that he would be selecting a new nominee for NASA Administrator, promising a leader who will prioritize American dominance in space exploration. The reversal marks a significant shift in Trump's space policy strategy during his ongoing campaign efforts, as he continues to place a high emphasis on revitalizing US space leadership. Isaacman, founder of the payment company Shift4 and commander of the first all-civilian spaceflight (Inspiration4), was widely seen as a bold choice with both business and private spaceflight experience. The decision to rescind Isaacman's nomination has stirred discussion in political and aerospace circles, particularly given his ties to both the private space sector and past bipartisan contributions. Critics and analysts alike view the withdrawal as part of Trump's broader effort to align top appointments with his political base ahead of the 2024 election cycle. As the search for a new NASA chief begins, the next nominee will face significant expectations to accelerate space exploration programs, enhance US competitiveness in low Earth orbit, and potentially shape the future of Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple Business Fear & Greed Index Plummets to Lowest Level Ever Recorded amid Global Trade War Arts & Culture Zahi Hawass: Claims of Columns Beneath the Pyramid of Khafre Are Lies News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks News Shell Unveils Cost-Cutting, LNG Growth Plan
Epoch Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Trump Withdraws Isaacman as NASA Administrator Nominee
A White House spokesperson confirmed on May 31 that President Donald Trump was withdrawing his nomination of Jared Isaacman to become the next administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). 'The Administrator of NASA will help lead humanity into space and execute President Trump's bold mission of planting the American flag on the planet Mars,' White House spokesperson Liz Huston said in an email received by The Epoch Times.
Politico
3 days ago
- Business
- Politico
White House plans to pull nomination for NASA administrator
The White House is planning to withdraw the nomination of Jared Isaacman to be the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, a White House official confirmed to POLITICO. The sudden move comes days before the Senate was slated to vote on his nomination to lead NASA. Isaacman, a commercial astronaut and billionaire CEO of the payment processing company Shift4, has a long-standing relationship with Elon Musk, who this week left his post as a senior adviser to President Donald Trump and chief of the Department of Government Efficiency. It's not yet clear what the White House's reasoning is for the personnel change. Semafor was first to report on the plan. The White House official was granted anonymity to discuss not-yet-announced personnel moves. Senate Democrats for months have been critical of Isaacman's relationship with Musk, in light of his close ties to the White House and his role as CEO of SpaceX, one of NASA's largest contractors. In March, The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk personally asked Isaacman to lead the agency, which Democrats honed in on during his confirmation hearing last month.
Mint
26-05-2025
- Science
- Mint
SpaceX pushes to get Starship rocket ready for Mars by next year
SpaceX is shifting personnel and resources to its powerful new rocket, hoping to have the vehicle ready for a Mars mission next year. Elon Musk's space company is making an enormous bet on Starship, which stands roughly 400 feet tall at liftoff and remains in an experimental phase. SpaceX is aiming to address the technical challenges ahead with Starship while continuing to fly the operational spacecraft and rockets that made the company a powerhouse. In recent months, employees have been moving into Starship roles, including some Dragon spacecraft staffers who were reassigned in mid-May, according to people familiar with the matter. SpaceX has also been making big investments in its complex in Texas for the vehicle, and has similar plans for Florida. The company faces near-term pressure to show that Starship can function as Musk and other executives have promised. It is behind schedule on work preparing a variant of Starship for a National Aeronautics and Space Administration mission to the moon currently set for 2027, people familiar with those efforts have said. This year, SpaceX struggled with back-to-back Starship flight tests that ended in explosions. The incidents disrupted airline traffic in Florida and the Caribbean region as debris fell. SpaceX is planning another test flight of the vehicle Tuesday evening. In a statement Friday, the company said it had conducted extensive testing to understand the failure of its latest mission and made changes for the next one. Reaching its goals with Starship 'won't always come in leaps," SpaceX said. 'It's definitely been a rough start of the year for Starship," Shana Diez, an engineering executive at SpaceX, said in a post on X after the second recent explosion. A single issue can cause a launch to fail, she said, and when factoring in costs and time, 'the overall problem can feel quite daunting." One of the Starship-related projects that SpaceX staff recently moved over to is called Starfall. It is tied to a military effort to one day use the vehicle to whisk military gear around the globe, the person familiar said. Military officials and space companies for years have researched using rockets to rapidly move cargo. The idea is spacecraft could ferry large amounts of material to bases or remote locations an hour or so after launching and flying through space. SpaceX in 2017 posted an animation online showing people in New York boarding a Starship on a barge and flying through space to Shanghai in 39 minutes, but executives haven't spoken much lately about so-called point-to-point Starship efforts. The company said in a legal filing last year it aims to conduct a rocket-cargo mission for the Air Force where Starship would attempt to transport and land more than 66,000 pounds of government cargo. It then said it expected to receive about $149 million tied to further developing Starship for the cargo efforts. Musk has been pushing SpaceX to try to launch a Starship spacecraft on an uncrewed mission to Mars next year. Taking a shot at the red planet on that time frame would require SpaceX to overcome engineering obstacles. An advantage of possibly flying there in 2026 is that Earth and Mars will be closer together, making a flight easier. One major challenge for any mission: in-orbit fueling. Rockets and spacecraft typically are loaded with all of their fuel on the ground, but SpaceX aims to fuel up Starships while they are in orbit for deep-space missions. Staffers have discussed Starship making a trip to Mars with three in-space refuels, people familiar with the matter said. Transferring propellant in space at the scale SpaceX is proposing for Starship hasn't been done before, and the company hasn't attempted to move fuel between two vehicles in orbit. The propellants must remain at super-cold temperatures or they can boil off. SpaceX's goal of flying to Mars next year might dovetail with the Trump administration's new priorities at NASA. In a recent budget proposal, the White House called for adding $1 billion in funding for Mars-focused efforts and large cuts across many other agency programs. Musk founded SpaceX more than two decades ago to ultimately try to send people to the red planet, and has described making humanity multiplanetary as an animating feature of his life. The chief executive of SpaceX, Tesla and other companies has said he wants to include a robot under development at Tesla on a Mars flight in 2026. 'Starship departs for Mars at the end of next year, carrying Optimus," Musk said in a post on X in March. Write to Micah Maidenberg at and Becky Peterson at
The Hindu
25-05-2025
- Science
- The Hindu
Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, crew to enter quarantine ahead of Axiom-4 launch to International Space Station
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and other crew members of the Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission to the International Space Station (ISS) are entering quarantine ahead of the scheduled launch on June 8 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Indian astronaut and crew members were given a send-off by employees of Axiom Space Inc. on Sunday (May 25, 2025). 'Thank you so much for your contribution, I may not know you personally but I understand that it is each one of you that have contributed to this mission being a success and am sure it will be a success,' Group Captain Shukla, the pilot of the Ax-4 mission, told Axiom Space employees. Also read | Experiments in Axiom mission to ISS to study if diabetics can stay in space 'The #Ax4 crew is on their way to quarantine. Before they go, Axiom Space employees came together to celebrate. Crew Send-off is a tradition that pays tribute to the dedication and tireless efforts of staff prior to the crew embarking on their mission. From #TeamAxiom, Godspeed #Ax4!' Axiom Space said in a post on social media platform X. The other crew members on the mission are Commander Peggy Whitson of the U.S., Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu of Hungary. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Ax-4 crew aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. The Ax-4 crew will spend up to 14 days at the orbiting laboratory. Group Captain Shukla, who is also one of the four astronaut-designates selected for the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) Gaganyaan mission, will be the first Indian astronaut to reach the ISS, and the first Indian in space after 40 years.
