SPACE reports, “NASA Administrator Bill Nelson is unconcerned that China will beat the United States in returning astronauts to the moon.” During a media teleconference on Tuesday, “Nelson dismissed concerns that the U.S. could lose the race to put human boots back on the moon.” Nelson said, “I do not have a concern that China is going to land before us. I think that China has a very aggressive plan. I think they would like to land before us, because that might give them some PR coup. But the fact is that I don’t think they will. I think it is true that their date that they announced keeps getting earlier. But specifically, with us landing in September of ‘26, that will be the first landing.”
Full Story (SPACE)
Tag: Bill Nelson
Czech Republic Signs Artemis Accords
SPACE reports that a ceremony held at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday “the Czech Republic’s Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of the nation alongside NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.” The Czech Republic now “becomes the 24th country to sign on to the international agreement that lays out principles for responsible exploration and development of the moon and space.” Lipavsky said during the ceremony, “I believe that the Artemis Accords will enable closer cooperation and coordination between like-minded nations. We believe that the signature will kickstart the development of an institutional and industrial cooperation within the Artemis community.”
Full Story (SPACE)
AIAA Statement on Senate Confirmation of the Honorable Bill Nelson as NASA Administrator
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 29, 2021 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates the Honorable Bill Nelson on being confirmed as the 14th NASA Administrator. AIAA Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement upon Nelson’s confirmation:
“On behalf of the Institute’s nearly 30,000 professional members, I would like to congratulate former Senator Bill Nelson on his confirmation as NASA’s 14th administrator. The agency is a source of meaningful inspiration for our country and for the world. We see significant opportunities for NASA to continue its important mission pushing the boundaries of space, aeronautics, and research and development on many fronts. Under Administrator Nelson’s leadership, we anticipate NASA will benefit from his extensive background and many bipartisan relationships as a former lawmaker.
Administrator Nelson has been a champion of our nation’s space and aeronautics programs during his many years serving in the U.S. Congress. He brings a unique perspective to the role, having spent six days in space on the Space Shuttle during mission STS-61-C, one of only two members of Congress with this distinction. He is a qualified and capable leader. As an elected official from the state of Florida, he understands the economic impact of the aerospace industry on our communities and the country, as well as the educational impact on our workforce. His knowledge and appreciation of the agency, combined with his legislative experience while working directly with elected officials at the state and federal level, will serve NASA well.
AIAA looks forward to supporting Administrator Nelson in his new role as we strive to maintain our nation’s leadership in space exploration and scientific discovery, while also helping make critical advances in technology development and aeronautics research.”
AIAA Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270.
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.