Jim Bridenstine Confirmed to Lead NASA

The US Senate narrowly approved the politician, who does not have a science background.

kerry grens
| 2 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

WIKIMEDIA, UNITED STATES CONGRESSAlong party lines, the US Senate has confirmed Congressman Jim Bridenstine (R-OK) as the new head of NASA today (April 19). The approval comes after a drawn-out nomination period during which senators questioned his qualifications—Bridenstine was a pilot and politician, but never a scientist.

“The NASA administrator should be a consummate space professional, that’s what this senator wants,” Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), who opposed the nominee, said yesterday, according to Politico. “That space professional ought to be technically and scientifically competent, and a skilled executive.”

Bridenstine was a Navy pilot, who has represented Oklahoma’s first congressional district since 2013. Science reports that as NASA Administrator, Bridenstine has his work cut out for him, including dealing with a delayed telescope launch and another planned telescope the White House wants to abandon. The New York Times notes that under President Donald Trump’s administration, NASA has set its focus on returning humans to the moon.

Trump nominated Bridenstine in September 2017, following the departure of Charles Bolden upon the President’s inauguration. Robert ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Keywords

Meet the Author

  • kerry grens

    Kerry Grens

    Kerry served as The Scientist’s news director until 2021. Before joining The Scientist in 2013, she was a stringer for Reuters Health, the senior health and science reporter at WHYY in Philadelphia, and the health and science reporter at New Hampshire Public Radio. Kerry got her start in journalism as a AAAS Mass Media fellow at KUNC in Colorado. She has a master’s in biological sciences from Stanford University and a biology degree from Loyola University Chicago.

Share
3D illustration of a gold lipid nanoparticle with pink nucleic acid inside of it. Purple and teal spikes stick out from the lipid bilayer representing polyethylene glycol.
February 2025, Issue 1

A Nanoparticle Delivery System for Gene Therapy

A reimagined lipid vehicle for nucleic acids could overcome the limitations of current vectors.

View this Issue
Enhancing Therapeutic Antibody Discovery with Cross-Platform Workflows

Enhancing Therapeutic Antibody Discovery with Cross-Platform Workflows

sartorius logo
Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Lonza
An illustration of animal and tree silhouettes.

From Water Bears to Grizzly Bears: Unusual Animal Models

Taconic Biosciences
Sex Differences in Neurological Research

Sex Differences in Neurological Research

bit.bio logo

Products

Photo of a researcher overseeing large scale production processes in a laboratory.

Scaling Lentiviral Vector Manufacturing for Optimal Productivity

Thermo Fisher Logo
Collage-style urban graphic of wastewater surveillance and treatment

Putting Pathogens to the Test with Wastewater Surveillance

An illustration of an mRNA molecule in front of a multicolored background.

Generating High-Quality mRNA for In Vivo Delivery with lipid nanoparticles

Thermo Fisher Logo
Tecan Logo

Tecan introduces Veya: bringing digital, scalable automation to labs worldwide