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Bill Nelson has resigned as NASA administrator, concluding a 50-year career in public service.
On Monday (Jan. 20), the same day Donald Trump commenced his second term as president, Nelson along with NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy departed the agency. Trump designated Janet Petro, who previously held the position of director at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, as NASA’s interim leader.
“As I exit public office today after 53 years, I express my gratitude for the tremendous opportunity of a lifetime serving the citizens of our nation. I am honored and appreciative,” Nelson stated in a post on X on Monday.
Affiliated with the Democratic Party, Nelson began his career in the U.S. government in 1972 when he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives.
Six years later, he secured a position in the U.S. House, representing Florida’s 9th congressional district, located near the renowned Space Coast, which houses both KSC and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
In January 1986, Nelson participated in the STS-61-C mission aboard the space shuttle Columbia, becoming the first serving member of the U.S. House to journey to the final frontier. The pilot for that mission was Charlie Bolden, who later became NASA chief during the Obama administration. STS-61-C occurred immediately prior to the STS-51-L flight of the space shuttle Challenger, which tragically ended just 73 seconds after liftoff on Jan. 28, 1986.
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Nelson sought to become the Democratic nominee in the Florida gubernatorial race in 1990 but was defeated in the primary by Lawton Chiles. Four years later, he was elected Florida’s Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner, and Fire Marshal. He was re-elected to that position in 1998 but vacated it in January 2001 after securing a seat in the U.S. Senate.
Nelson was re-elected in 2006 and 2012 but lost narrowly to Republican Rick Scott in 2018. In 2019, he was appointed to NASA’s advisory council, and President Joe Biden nominated him as NASA administrator in February 2019, an appointment that the Senate unanimously confirmed two months later.
His term as NASA chief was marked by numerous significant events, including the launch of the $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope, the Europa Clipper mission, the DART asteroid-impacting spacecraft, and the Artemis 1 lunar mission, among other prominent initiatives.
As implied by its name, Artemis 1 was the inaugural mission in the Artemis lunar exploration program, which began during Trump’s initial presidency.
Petro is Trump’s selection for interim NASA chief, though the president has a different individual in mind for the permanent role — billionaire tech entrepreneur and seasoned private spaceflight veteran Jared Isaacman, whom Trump officially nominated on Monday.
In another post on X on Monday, Nelson offered some counsel to Isaacman — or whoever may take the position should the Senate not confirm Trump’s first selection.
“We are only temporary caretakers of this remarkable space agency. The aspiration of humanity in the stars surpasses any individual — greater than any one person, nation, and generation,” Nelson penned in a two-page “letter to the forthcoming NASA administrator.”
“As a previous administrator, as a proud American, I am cheering for you,” he added. “Your achievements are NASA’s achievements, and NASA’s achievements reflect the nation’s successes. I stand ready to assist in any way that I can.”
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