The president-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, announced this Wednesday that he chose the billionaire Jared Isaacman the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk, as head of NASA.
“I am delighted to nominate Jared Isaacman, an outstanding business leader, philanthropist, pilot and astronaut, as administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA),” Trump wrote on his network. Truth Social.
“Jared will advance NASA’s mission of discovery and inspiration, paving the way for innovative achievements in space science, technology and exploration,” praised Isaacman, very close to Elon Musk, also selected by Trump for his government team.
Isaacman, 41, became one of the leading figures in commercial spaceflight thanks to his work at SpaceX, Musk’s company.
In the same post, while continuing the presentation of his chosen one, Trump clarified that the billionaire has what it takes. “Jared’s passion for space, his experience as an astronaut, and his dedication to pushing the limits of exploration, uncovering the mysteries of the universe, and advancing the new space economy make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new era.” said the tycoon.
I am delighted to nominate Jared Isaacman, an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot, and astronaut, as Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Jared will drive NASA’s mission of discovery and inspiration, paving the way for…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 4, 2024
The pioneer that now promises populations on the Moon and Mars
A native of Pennsylvania, Isaacman founded the company that became Shift4 Payments in the basement of the family home when he was 16 years old.
He is able to pilot military aircraft, participated in air shows and established a world record around the world.
“There will inevitably be a thriving space economy, creating opportunities for countless people to live and work in space,” Isaacman said on the social network X after Trump’s announcement.
on the platform X, The other social network also referred to the election of who will once again be head of state of the North American country.
“With the support of President Trump, I can promise you this: We will never again lose our ability to travel to the stars and we will never settle for second place,” he wrote.
And then he predicted: “Americans will walk on the Moon and Mars and, in doing so, we will improve life here on Earth.”
I am honored to receive President Trump’s @realDonaldTrump nomination to serve as the next Administrator of NASA. Having been fortunate to see our amazing planet from space, I am passionate about America leading the most incredible adventure in human history.
On my last mission…
— Jared Isaacman (@rooksacman) December 4, 2024
In addition, he said that “it is an honor” to play this role and work alongside the “extraordinary team at NASA to make our shared dreams of exploration and discovery come true.”
In September, Isaacman conducted the first-ever private spacewalk as part of the Polaris program, a collaboration between NASA’s new CEO and SpaceX that will include three missions in total.
The financial terms of this partnership are confidentialbut Jared Isaacman is believed to have invested $200 million of his personal fortune to lead SpaceX’s Inspiration4 orbital mission in 2021, an all-civilian endeavor and his first foray into space.
He is also an ardent supporter of SpaceX and Elon Musk, appointed by Trump to co-chair a commission on government effectiveness. The South African gave him warm congratulations on social media.
His moon walk and the mystery of how much the space adventure cost
Isaacman, who this Wednesday was announced as head of NASA by Donald Trump for his second term in the White House, had already been at the center of the scene in 2024 when he became the first private astronaut to perform a spacewalk.
The five-day mission was carried out using a capsule built by Elon Musk’s SpaceX company. During the flight, Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis donned spacesuits provided by the company and They briefly floated out of the capsule.
It was Isaacman’s second trip to space in a SpaceX capsule. The prodigy pilot never agreed to reveal the cost of the flights. In any case, it is speculated that the Polaris Dawn mission cost 220 million dollars and the previous mission, Inspiration 4, another 200.
Isaacman’s dizzying story: from leaving high school to commanding NASA
Born on February 11, 1983 in the United States, Isaacman admits that he never felt very motivated by the content of high school.
That was why his head was more in the practical and entrepreneurial part. Thus, at the age of 15, he founded the company Decho Systems with a friend to design websites for companies, Forbes said.
Payment processor Merchant Services Inc. was one of its first customers. And when Isaacman found out they had computer security problems, he offered to work for them.
It was then that at age 16 he made the difficult decision to drop out of high school. In the basement of his parents’ house he founded businesses based on the creation of web applications to simplify the process and acceptance of cards.
Years later he founded a company that had 100 military aircraft and trained fighter pilots for the United States Air Force. In 2020, his fortune amounted to $1.4 billion.
For Isaacman, flying “is still an escape route.” He dedicated millions of dollars to that. It was also the means for Trump to nominate him for NASA, where he would replace Bill Nelson (82), a former Democratic senator who – while a legislator from Florida – flew aboard the space shuttle Columbia in 1986, just before the Challenger disaster.