The NASA headquarters is located in Washington DC; The building itself appointed Mary Jackson, the agency’s first African-American engineer.Credit: John M. Chase / Getty
NASA has suddenly closed its chief-scientific office, as well as 2 other offices, licensed 23 employees. The action of March 10 leaves the agency without a means of feeding independent scientific advice to its highest leadership, at a time when it is Talk about sending astronauts to the moon And develop plans to go to Mars.
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Janet Petro, the interim administrator of NASA, said in an e-mail on the agency level that “we consider this as an opportunity to reshape our workforce”. The layoffs come a few days before all American federal agencies required to subject a plan to eliminate the employeesAs part of a radical reduction of the federal government led by American president Donald Trump and His Elon Musk advisor in the name of improving efficiency.
These are the first NASA layoffs since Trump took office, and they have taken a different model from those of other federal agencies in recent weeks. NASA has been spared, for unknown reasons, the vast Probatory employee dismissals – Those who have little job protection because they have been in their post for less than two years – seen in other agencies. This decision made NASA the first agency under the current administration of Trump to dismiss preventive career employees, starting the “force reductions” (RIF) earlier than many observers had not planned it. It is not yet known if other agencies could follow the example of NASA.
The offices closed by NASA are its office of the chief scientist; Its Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy; And the branch of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility of its diversity and equal opportunities office. The last of them cut is a direct result of Trump’s executive order of January 20 has Initiatives for diversity, equity and inclusion through the federal government. But the reason for the closure of the other two offices is not as obvious.
Think about the future
The two offices advise the NASA chief or administrator on scientific and technical issues. Petro occupies this position until the candidate, billionaire and private astronaut of Trump, Jared Isaacman, – a friend of Musk – is confirmed by the American Senate.
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The two offices are unique in that they offer means to connect the strategy between the departments and divisions of NASA. With their closure, “you will lose a strategic reflection,” said a member of NASA staff who know the structure of the offices but did not want to be appointed for fear of reprisals.