America’s newly elected President Donald Trump has announced the name of the new chief of NASA. Trump on Wednesday appointed billionaire businessman and the first private astronaut to walk in space, Jared Isaacman, as the next head of NASA.
However, as soon as this name came to the fore, questions related to conflict of interest are being raised. In fact, Isaacman has had financial relations with SpaceX chief Elon Musk. 41-year-old Isaacman, founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, has emerged as a big figure in the field of commercial space flight through his high-profile relationship with SpaceX.
Announcing this, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “With great pleasure I am nominating Jared Isaacman, an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot and astronaut, as the head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Jared will advance NASA’s mission.” In a post after Trump’s announcement, Isaacman said, “The space economy is sure to grow rapidly. It will create opportunities for countless people to live and work in space. At NASA, we will pursue these possibilities.”
Who is Isaacman?
Isaacman, a native of Pennsylvania, started a business with the help of his family at the age of just 16. This company is now known as Shift4 Payments which is a multi-billion dollar company. He is a skilled aviator who is also able to fly military aircraft. He has performed in US airshows and has also set a world record. Isaacman came into the limelight when he made history in September by walking in space by exiting the spacecraft Crew Dragon. This was the first time a non-professional astronaut walked in space. Isaacman reportedly spent $200 million of his own money to lead the 2021 SpaceX Inspiration4 orbital mission. This was his first expedition to space. A staunch supporter of SpaceX and Musk, Isaacman often praises the company and its vision on the social media platform X.
