NASA Administrator

The administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the highest-ranking official of NASA, the national space agency of the United States. The administrator is NASA's chief decision maker, responsible for providing clarity to the agency's vision and serving as a source of internal leadership within NASA. The office holder also has an important place within United States space policy, and is assisted by a deputy administrator.

The administrator is appointed by the president of the United States, with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, and thereafter serves at the president's pleasure. Janet Petro has served as the acting administrator since January 20, 2025. Entrepreneur and commercial astronaut Jared Isaacman has been the nominee for NASA administrator from December 4, 2024 to May 31, 2025.

Duties and responsibilities

The administrator serves as NASA's chief executive officer, accountable to the President for the leadership necessary to achieve the agency's mission. This leadership requires articulating the agency's vision, setting its programmatic and budget priorities and internal policies, and assessing Agency performance.

History

The first administrator of NASA was Dr. T. Keith Glennan; during his term he brought together the disparate projects in space development research in the US. Daniel Goldin held the post for the longest term (nearly 10 years), and is best known for pioneering the "faster, better, cheaper" approach to space programs. The only person to hold the post twice is James C. Fletcher, who returned to NASA following the ''Challenger'' disaster.

The current administrator is KSC director Janet Petro, who was designated by President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025 as acting Administrator. She replaced Bill Nelson, who was nominated by President Joe Biden on March 19, 2021, confirmed by the Senate on April 29, and officially sworn in on May 3. Entrepreneur and commercial astronaut Jared Isaacman was nominated by Trump (while he was President-elect) on December 4, 2024, but his nomination was withdrawn on May 31, potentially due to Isaacman's donations to Democratic, anti-Trump politicians.

List of administrators

; Status

Line of succession

The line of succession for the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is as follows:
# Deputy administrator of NASA
# Associate administrator of NASA
# Chief of staff of NASA
# Director of Johnson Space Center (Houston, Texas)
# Director of Kennedy Space Center (Merritt Island, Florida)
# Director of Marshall Space Flight Center (Redstone Arsenal, Alabama)
''In the event of there being no deputy administrator of NASA, the associate administrator will serve as acting administrator.''

See also

* Chairmen of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
* NASA Chief Scientist

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Administrator Of The National Aeronautics And Space Administration

1958 establishments in the United States