The outgoing NASA administrator, Bill Nelson, expressed cautious optimism about the agency's future under President-elect Donald Trump's nominee, Jared Isaacman, despite potential Artemis program changes. During a December 5th briefing, Nelson stated he had spoken with Isaacman and invited him to a meeting. He declined to discuss details of their conversation but emphasized that NASA was handing over a “safe and reliable way forward” to return to the moon ahead of China.

There’s anticipation that the new administration will attempt to modify the Artemis architecture, particularly its reliance on the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, Orion spacecraft, and lunar Gateway. Delays to the Artemis 2 mission, now slated for April 2026, partly stem from Orion heat shield issues. Isaacman previously agreed with criticisms of Artemis, including those targeting SLS and Orion, suggesting potential cost issues from industry consolidation.

Isaacman’s close relationship with Elon Musk has sparked speculation about a greater SpaceX role in Artemis, potentially replacing SLS and Orion with Starship. Nelson, however, expressed skepticism about such a drastic overhaul, highlighting SLS and Orion as the only human-rated spacecraft that have flown beyond the moon. While acknowledging the legitimacy of the question, he stated, “I don’t see…that you’re suddenly going to have Starship take over everything.” He nonetheless viewed Musk’s influence as potentially beneficial for securing NASA funding.

Isaacman's nomination has garnered praise. Rich DalBello, outgoing director of the Office of Space Commerce, highlighted Isaacman's passion and experience. Tim Crain of Intuitive Machines anticipated continued commercialization efforts under the new administration. Steve Altemus of Intuitive Machines advocated for an Artemis “reformulation” to address budget and schedule concerns, emphasizing the need for commercial partnerships. Eric Lasker of Varda Space Industries highlighted Isaacman's commercial background as beneficial, noting his experience building a large company and interacting with NASA.

Nelson concluded by stating, “I’m basically optimistic about the future for NASA under the new administration.” Lasker offered a humorous suggestion: “the NASA administrator goes up and repairs Hubble himself. That would be pretty awesome.”