Billionaire investor Jared Isaacman has been formally approved as the new administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, concluding an extraordinary selection saga where the President nominated him, pulled the nomination, and then put him forward again.
Isaacman, an aviation enthusiast who became the first private citizen to conduct a spacewalk, is also the first agency head in a generation to come entirely from the private sector.
For many, the success of his time in office will be judged on one pivotal challenge: if NASA can land people to the Moon in advance of the Chinese space program.
Trump has made clear a desire for the United States to build a lasting moon outpost, both to facilitate resource extraction and to function as a stepping stone for journeys to Mars.
On This week, the Senate confirmed the nomination with a 67-30 vote.
Trump initially pulled the nomination in the spring, pointing to a "thorough review of prior associations".
At the point, the president was engaged in a dispute with tech billionaire Musk, one of his major contributors, with whom Isaacman has business connections.
Isaacman indicates he is now fully behind the administration's goal to harvest the moon, creating a divergence from Musk, who has stated that going to the Moon is a distraction from the journey to Martian exploration.
In the present global space race, countries are racing to tap into the moon's resources.
“Now is not the time for hesitation but a time for progress because if we lag, if we err, we may be permanently behind, and the results could alter the strategic equilibrium here on Earth,” he told lawmakers during his hearing.
The billionaire entrepreneur sees fostering more industry players as key to achieving those goals, according to a recently disclosed document laying out his strategy for NASA.
In his confirmation hearing, he stood by the strategy, which he crafted when he was originally put forward, but noted it was a evolving strategy.
His welcoming of multiple providers could also create a conflict with Musk. Recently, he commended the issuance of a significant agreement to Blue Origin, which is one of the main challengers of Musk's SpaceX.
In the strategy paper, he suggested the agency should expand collaboration with research institutes, envisioning the agency as a "force multiplier for science".
He cited the planned 2027 launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope as a flagship example.
"Should we be close to something extraordinary - like launching Roman - I will leave no stone unturned to get the program to the pad, even using my own resources if that's what it requires to produce the science," he wrote.
According to analyses, Isaacman's net worth is estimated at approximately $1.2bn, accumulated through his financial services firm and the sale of his company that trained pilots and operated a collection of military aircraft.
The position of agency chief will be his first job in public office, a contrast to the last two people appointed as NASA chief.
He will take over from the former transportation secretary, who has acted as temporary leader since July.
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