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,[1] and is assisted by a deputy administrator.
| Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration | |
|---|---|
 NASA seal Constituent part of the administrator's standard | |
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| Reports to | President |
| Seat | Washington, D.C. |
| Nominator | The president with Senate advice and consent |
| Term length | At the pleasure of the president |
| Constituting instrument | 51 U.S.C. § 20111 |
| Inaugural holder | Thomas Keith Glennan |
| Salary | $221,900 annually (Executive Schedule II) |
| Website | Official website |
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. Jared Isaacman has served as the administrator since December 18, 2025.[2]
Duties and responsibilities
editThe 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.[3]
History
editThe 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.[4] 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.[5] The only person to hold the post twice is James C. Fletcher, who returned to NASA following the Challenger disaster.[6]
The current administrator is entrepreneur and philanthropist Jared Isaacman, who was nominated by President Donald Trump on November 5, 2025. [7] He replaced Sean Duffy, who served as acting administrator from July 9, 2025 to December 17, 2025.[8] Jared Isaacman was nominated by Trump (while he was president-elect) on December 4, 2024,[9] but his nomination was withdrawn on May 31,[10] reportedly because of his connections to Elon Musk and donations towards Democratic, anti-Trump politicians.[11]
List of administrators
edit- Status
| No. | Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Days served | President serving under | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | T. Keith Glennan | August 19, 1958 | January 20, 1961 | 885 | Dwight D. Eisenhower | ||
| - | Hugh Dryden | January 11, 1961 | February 14, 1961 | 24 | John F. Kennedy | ||
| 2 | James E. Webb | February 14, 1961 | October 7, 1968 | 1,035 | |||
| 1,781 (2,816 total) |
Lyndon B. Johnson | ||||||
| 3 | Thomas O. Paine | October 8, 1968 | March 21, 1969 | 104 | |||
| 60 | Richard Nixon | ||||||
| March 21, 1969 | September 15, 1970 | 543 (707 total) | |||||
| - | George Low | September 16, 1970 | April 26, 1971 | 222 | |||
| 4 | James C. Fletcher | April 27, 1971 | May 1, 1977 | 1,200 | |||
| 895 | Gerald Ford | ||||||
| 101 (3258 total) |
Jimmy Carter | ||||||
| - | Alan M. Lovelace | May 2, 1977 | June 20, 1977 | 49 | |||
| 5 | Robert A. Frosch | June 21, 1977 | January 20, 1981 | 1,309 | |||
| - | Alan M. Lovelace | January 21, 1981 | July 10, 1981 | 171 (220 total) |
Ronald Reagan | ||
| 6 | James M. Beggs | July 10, 1981 | December 4, 1985 | 1,608 | |||
| - | William Graham | December 4, 1985 | May 11, 1986 | 158 | |||
| 7 | James C. Fletcher | May 12, 1986 | April 8, 1989 | 984 | |||
| 78 (3258 total) |
George H. W. Bush | ||||||
| - | Dale D. Myers | April 8, 1989 | May 13, 1989 | 35 | |||
| 8 | Richard H. Truly | May 14, 1989 | June 30, 1989 | 47 | |||
| July 1, 1989 | March 31, 1992 | 1,004 (1,052 total) | |||||
| 9 | Daniel Goldin | April 1, 1992 | November 17, 2001 | 294 | |||
| 2,922 | Bill Clinton | ||||||
| 301 (3,517 total) |
George W. Bush | ||||||
| - | Daniel Mulville | November 19, 2001 | December 21, 2001 | 32 | |||
| 10 | Sean O'Keefe | December 21, 2001 | February 11, 2005 | 1,148 | |||
| - | Frederick D. Gregory | February 11, 2005 | April 14, 2005 | 62 | |||
| 11 | Michael D. Griffin | April 14, 2005 | January 20, 2009 | 1,377 | |||
| - | Christopher Scolese | January 20, 2009 | July 17, 2009 | 178 | Barack Obama | ||
| 12 | Charles Bolden | July 17, 2009 | January 20, 2017 | 2,744 | |||
| - | Robert M. Lightfoot Jr. | January 20, 2017 | April 23, 2018 | 458 | Donald Trump | ||
| 13 | Jim Bridenstine | April 23, 2018 | January 20, 2021 | 1,003 | |||
| - | Steve Jurczyk | January 20, 2021 | May 3, 2021 | 103 | Joe Biden | ||
| 14 | Bill Nelson | May 3, 2021 | January 20, 2025 | 1,358 | |||
| - | Janet Petro | January 20, 2025 | July 9, 2025 | 170 | Donald Trump | ||
| - | Sean Duffy | July 09, 2025 | December 17, 2025 | 161 | |||
| 15 | Jared Isaacman | December 17, 2025 | Incumbent | 1 | |||
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Line of succession
editThe line of succession for the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is as follows:[12]
- 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
editReferences
edit- ^ "NASA Strategic Management Handbook". Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
- ^ "Jared Isaacman Nominated as Nasa Administrator". Retrieved December 17, 2025.
- ^ "Chapter 2-Roles and Responsibilities". Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
- ^ "T. Keith Glennan biography". NASA. August 4, 2006. Archived from the original on July 8, 2008. Retrieved July 5, 2008.
- ^ "Daniel S. Goldin biography". NASA. March 12, 2004. Archived from the original on June 15, 2008. Retrieved July 5, 2008.
- ^ "James C. Fletcher biography". NASA. Archived from the original on July 6, 2008. Retrieved July 5, 2008.
- ^ |title=Nomination of Jared Isaacman|https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c78ze3r1xrro
- ^ "Sean Duffy to be Acting NASA Administrator". Retrieved February 6, 2025.
- ^ "Trump Picks Jared Isaacman as NASA Administrator". Bloomberg.com. December 4, 2024. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
- ^ "White House to pull NASA nominee Isaacman". Archived from the original on May 31, 2025. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
- ^ Swan, Jonathan; Haberman, Maggie; Chang, Kenneth (May 31, 2025). "Trump to Withdraw Musk's Ally as Nominee for Top NASA Job". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
- ^ "Designation of Officers of the National Aeronautics And Space Administration To Act as Administrator". Federal Register. January 22, 2009. Archived from the original on October 30, 2016. Retrieved October 30, 2016.