Space fans inside the space bubble – shut off from he really old around them – Grok via NASAWatch.com
Keith’s note: It is certainly refreshing for the Administrator of NASA to take a personal, hands-on interest in clearly stating that transparency is a priority at NASA and responding to events in near-real time. But he has to do most of that by himself. His writing and speaking style are easy to detect: no stilted English, no odd capitalizations, no weird grammar, no jargon and little in the way of overly gratuitous rah rah. Instead it is mostly to-the-point substance. Unfortunately, NASA Public Affairs staff can’t or won’t engage in basic human language in a similar manner. Instead, they cut and paste pre-written talking points and political babble – or just ignore the chatter – and those who do the chattering – altogether. Most of Isaacman’s time on social media seems to be focused on the bloggers and influencers and random armchair rocketeer posters on social media (me included) – all of whom are snugly inside the space bubble – a pocket universe that is mostly invisible to the real world. Don’t get me wrong: It is good that Isaacman cares about the fans of space exploration and is willing to engage with them – and make a convert here and there. Alas, he parachuted in the middle of several decades of other people’s bad decisions and now everyone expects him to fix all of that by next week. It is unfortunate that he has to spend time on postings inside the space bubble – often about woulda-coulda/oughta minutiae – and not on NASA’s value to the remaining 99.99999% of America – and the world. So chill space fans. Ad Astra y’all. Several Isaacman posting examples below:
This post in response to some generalized naysayer commentary about Artemis – https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2022725476179915074
NASA’s mission to return to the Moon and establish an enduring presence is rooted in the peaceful pursuit of science, discovery, and economic potential that can benefit all life on Earth. It will serve as a great proving ground for the technologies required to undertake missions to Mars and beyond.
Succeeding sends a message to the world about what else we may be capable of accomplishing. Failing raises questions about what else might be broken, which is why NASA’s mission carries direct national security implications.
With that in mind, no needless requirement, policy, or regulation will stand in the way of progress. We will not give up the Moon, or America’s rightful place leading in the high ground of space, because we were unwilling to ruffle corporate feathers repairing a prop transfer interface.
This is the NASA attitude that took the world to the surface of the Moon on July 20, 1969, and it is the NASA attitude that will bring us back in 2028.
This post in response to complaints about lack of transparency with recent Artemis II testing. https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2022701450057470189
I will just say we are leaning forward with transparency, sharing the blemishes and the successes, because for a program as costly and important to national security as Artemis, the public is entitled to the facts.
The confidence test related to the seals we repaired and replaced after WDR-1 provided a great deal of data, and we observed materially lower leak rates compared to prior observations during WDR-1. I would not say something broke that caused the premature end to the test, as much as we observed enough and reached a point where waiting out additional troubleshooting was unnecessary.
The test was performed Thursday afternoon the 12th. Crew-12 launched early the morning of the 13th. The Artemis II test data review took place the afternoon of the 13th, and we released the blog update that evening. I believe we acted in a timely manner, considering we did not want to create needless confusion alongside a crewed launch to the space station.
Considering the issues observed during the lead-up to Artemis I, and the long duration between missions, we should not be surprised there are challenges entering the Artemis II campaign. That does not excuse the situation, but we understand it. I am impressed with the NASA team and our contractors working diligently through the campaign. They are professionals, and they know the dream they are trying to enable. I will say near-conclusively for Artemis III, we will cryoproof the vehicle before it gets to the pad, and the propellant loading interfaces we are troubleshooting will be redesigned.
As I have stated many times, the President ensured Artemis would endure through dozens of missions, enabling repeatable and affordable operations in the lunar environment as we construct and operate a Moon base. The architecture will continue to evolve as we learn and as industry capabilities mature. Simply said, where we begin is not where we will end.
There is still a great deal of work ahead to prepare for this historic mission. We will not launch unless we are ready and the safety of our astronauts will remain the highest priority. We will keep everyone informed as NASA prepares to return to the Moon.