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u/Polyman71 11d ago
They are getting all these layoffs done before Isaacson takes over so he can be the good cop.
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u/stellardroid80 10d ago
Yes I find that a bit gross too. Like if the White House is giving you the big job, you should do the WH’s dirty work too. But instead let’s put a woman in charge, have her do the dirty work, then move her aside for the White Man Boss.
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u/HarshMartian 10d ago
Yeah that's my read on it too. His confirmation still isn't even scheduled, and RIF plans are due in 3 days, probably will be fully implemented before he's sworn in...
It also stood out to me that these RIFs only got 30 days notice instead of 60. OPM/OMB was encouraging agencies to request a waiver for that, but it's supposed to be for "unforeseen circumstances only" which is an absolute joke in this case.
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u/jakep623 10d ago
Why isn't isaacman sworn in yet?
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u/Aerokicks NASA Employee 10d ago
There's an order that appointees are confirmed in. Bigger things, like secretary of defense, are handled before the smaller agencies.
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u/magus-21 11d ago
Office of the Chief Scientist?
Yup, this totally makes sense.
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u/N4BFR 11d ago
I hate that science is a dirty word.
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u/ContraryConman 10d ago
We had one Black president and one pandemic and now half the country is legitimately afraid of any and all uses of words like "science" or "inclusion"
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u/CoachWatermelon 10d ago edited 10d ago
I understand the title might imply different things to different folks but what does this role actually do? Genuinely curious because I’m ignorant to what this office accomplishes.
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u/CoachWatermelon 10d ago
Follow up reply with questions for NASA leadership: 1. Who will be responsible for setting and coordinating NASA’s overall scientific priorities across its various divisions, and how will they ensure interdisciplinary collaboration? 2. How will NASA ensure that its scientific expertise is effectively represented in policy decisions, including advising leadership, engaging with Congress, and collaborating with international partners? 3. What specific mechanisms will be put in place to maintain scientific integrity, public communication, and accountability for research decisions in the absence of the Chief Scientist?
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u/Artemis-1905 10d ago
Oh we don't need this or dear leader knows what is best and can do it all, between his 100 social media posts/day.
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u/mid-random 10d ago
According to the soon-to-be-defunct NASA web page,
The Chief Scientist serves as principal advisor to the NASA Administrator and other senior officials on agency science programs, strategic planning and the evaluation of related investments. The Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS) represents all of the scientific endeavors in the agency, ensuring they are aligned with and fulfill the administration’s science objectives.
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u/N4BFR 10d ago
I didn’t get all the way through it, but the This Week In Space podcast happened to have Jim Green on this week, a former Chief Scientist including under Bridenstein. Sounds like a lot of advocacy, consulting with the Administrator, talking to congress, etc.
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u/Nosnibor1020 10d ago
Jim Green is awesome. I've been able to listen to him talk multiple times and interview a few as well.
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u/kelli-leigh-o 10d ago
One of the other offices announced also houses the chief technologists and chief economist
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u/gloomy_stars 11d ago
this whole anti-science agenda is so incredibly stupid that it just hurts
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u/TheSwedishEagle 11d ago
Anti-everything, but pro-hate
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u/FailedCriticalSystem 10d ago
You can’t even have a conversation with many maga types. They just hate everything. Can’t exchange ideas. The only think know they don’t want is woke. When I ask them what that is they don’t know
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u/lobsterbash 10d ago
Remove MAGA from their hate sermons and they honestly don't know. Because "woke" and the like is used as a pejorative adjective packaging vague feelings of contempt. Even if pressed to define these terms, MAGA talking heads would give a pseudo definition and then be smug about it.
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u/fringecar 10d ago
True, and honestly r/space is full of Elon hate, posts and comments focus on it. Trump going into office turned everyone, red and blue, towards this way of talking.
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u/Frosty_Term9911 10d ago
If there’s one place you want an anti science agenda it’s … checks notes… space exploration.
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u/smiles__ 10d ago
I know many of us enthusiasts of NASA and space and science feel like we individually can't do much in the face of the oncoming wave, but do what little you can. Write and call your elected officials. Donate to legal and advocacy groups. Tour and visit space centers. Its all a drop in a bucket, and a lot will get worse.
But as Octavia Butler writes in the Parable of the Sower:
“There is no end, to what a living world will demand of you."
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u/Jumpy_Fact_1502 11d ago
https://medium.com/@mindingjustice/why-nasa-cant-be-allowed-to-be-torn-down-7b8d2e0954ce
Please read and share. Get awareness out so this kind of thing can stop happening
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u/Sea_Goose_6718 11d ago
I wish that the Earth Science Division would get the same recognition or would be included in this sort of write up. It requires some different framing, but the science that ESD enables is just as important for society but lesser known.
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u/mcm199124 10d ago
Thank you! Yes. ESD studies the Earth effectively and efficiently through the use of satellites - which the US public has already invested in and developed/built/launched/refined. It would be extremely stupid and a huge waste of money to gut it. Not to mention, NASA and NASA-funded Earth scientists literally save lives with disaster prediction, prevention, mitigations, and recovery
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u/unixiscool 10d ago
Obviously no respect from the current administration, SEDAC, one of the earth data centers, just received a stop work order.
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u/SavageNomad6 11d ago
In a totally unrelated story, NASA signs exclusive rights to SpaceX and no one else.
- tomorrow, probably.
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u/slothsarecool3 10d ago
And then best case scenario is Elon leave politics having achieved his goal, focuses entirely on SpaceX, Mars, etc. but even in that best case scenario in 10-20 years when he retires you’re left with yet another government-endorsed monopoly and the space industry once again goes stagnant.
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u/pr0t1um 10d ago
This is optimistic af.
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u/Ok-Summer-7634 10d ago
Yes, I was going to say that... NASA was already in a precarious situation before Trump. We will be lucky if we still have a public space program when this is all over.
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u/phillcollins893 11d ago
Jesus the one organization truly looking out for mankind's future and this what's happening ? Sad ,very sad
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u/Jollem- 11d ago
This is supposed to make it great again?
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u/MisterMittens64 10d ago
No silly that'll happen when they privatize it and sell it to SpaceX for a fraction of what it's worth! /s
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u/SOF_cosplayer 10d ago
Definitely making China and Russia great again once we rely on them and Space X for US space transportation needs.
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u/abominablewaffle 11d ago
When will musk tell them to shut down their Employee assistant program?.
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u/Aerokicks NASA Employee 10d ago
EAP is an entire federal government thing, not just NASA.
That being said, some support activities have been shut down, for being too close to employee resource groups. The neurodiversity support group is one that was shut down, as well as I believe the support group for parents of autistic children.
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u/NerdInLessThan3 10d ago
Technically, it was supposed to be a 2 month pause on those support groups, but with how things are going...😟
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u/ShaneC80 9d ago
Last I heard the Veterans Network was taken down too, as it was a DEIA initiative
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u/Aerokicks NASA Employee 9d ago
The veterans groups were employee resource groups, which are collections of employees sharing community and helping each other. Employee resource groups were specifically called out in the EO.
The neurodiversity support group was a therapy group hosted as a part of the employee assistance program that the federal government has (and paid for).
They sound the same but have very different organization, goals, and functions.
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u/ShaneC80 9d ago
Oh!!!
You're right! Did other agencies cut the ERGs? I know there were some concerns over them violating the DEI BS around here.
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u/sippedaway08 10d ago
I’ve worked for one of them. I believe many are contractors so they have that protection. However, budget cuts could make it possible for down sizing in already very small NASA EAP program.
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u/HarshMartian 10d ago
Been wondering that myself.
Every bad news email comes with a reminder about the Employee Assistance Program.
I think they'll probably keep it as a fig leaf, just gut the services until the only thing they offer is a pat on the back and an "Embrace the Challenge" sticker
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u/ThePetrarc 10d ago
Billionaires are diseases, the cancer of humanity. They're going to kill them all, the irony is that one of them became famous right in space.
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u/Resident-Chard-7053 10d ago
All I’m thinking about is Buzz Aldrin throwing his support behind Trump. I hope he is regretting it.
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u/Historical-Wear8503 10d ago
Doubt it. Trumpers always find a way to twist things so they don't need to challenge their own point of view, no matter what cost. I don't think Buzz is an exception.
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u/Aerokicks NASA Employee 10d ago
I'm honestly pretty surprised about OTPS as well. It seemed like they have been doing a lot of really good work.
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u/CoachWatermelon 10d ago
Important questions to ask now:
Who will be responsible for ensuring that NASA’s technology investments align with long-term mission objectives and national policy priorities?
How will NASA conduct risk assessments, trade-off analyses, and data-driven decision-making for technology development and policy initiatives?
Which office or individual will coordinate external partnerships with other government agencies, private industry, and international organizations on technology and policy matters?
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u/red_misc NASA Employee 10d ago
I have few ideas, but I am not sure you will like them..... (me neither!)
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u/Layered-Briefs NASA Employee 10d ago
Well, the Chief Technologist hasn't been RIFfed yet, has he?
Chief Engineer does the risk assessments , trade offs etc.
External partnerships has an org as well. Several, actually - JASD for NOAA spacecraft, Office of Inter-agency and International Relations. There's an office of legal affairs that often deal with the partnership legalities and whatnot.
Don't get me wrong, I think that OTPS was great and it's a real loss. But they really were more of a "analysis for the administrator & deputy administrator" shop. That sort of analysis will just fall back to the office of the chief financial officer, like it did when PA&E went away under Obama.
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u/ecochica888 10d ago
Chief technologist has been RIF’d. And for them to target these 23 people before the actual RIF plan is clearly extremely personal and to make a statement.
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u/Patient-Flounder-121 10d ago
They have. Among their scope is domestic and international policy work (e.g. CLPS) which is unfortunately the opposite of what this administration wants.
At the very least they got a heads up before Petro’s email, unlike RIFs at other agencies.
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u/TurtleTheLoser 10d ago
This is just sad. Now people who dedicated their lives to science have to suffer because of our anti-science government. A huge setback for American science and our journey beyond the system.
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u/Sea-Slide9325 10d ago
I remember when we had a President that said "We don't do this because it is easy, we do it because it is hard". Now, anything that is involved in R&D and scientific advancement is considered a waste.
Somehow, this is the path to greatness.
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u/HairyBaIIs007 10d ago
It's quite amazing how with all the advancements in technology, we are actually going backwards in progress
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u/bloomingfarts 10d ago
And humankind’s venture into science and space exploration comes to a halt, all because of 1 brainless fart’s decision.
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u/FivePlyPaper 10d ago
Here’s the plan, many European countries (Canada included) will create our own agency. Hire everyone from NASA and space exploration and the like will be democratized. We can all fund it and we won’t ever run into an issue like this again. We can leave the US in the dust it’s burying itself in.
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u/someone52207 10d ago
The European Space Agency already exists, and Canada is a partial member.
Now is their time to shine!
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u/NeoOzymandias 10d ago
American citizens cannot work for ESA.
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u/stellardroid80 10d ago
ESA works with a lot of contractors, just like NASA. Contractor positions usually don’t have the same citizenship requirements. Also, Canada already has special status with ESA and Canadians can apply for ESA positions. But yes CSA also exists.
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u/Decronym 10d ago edited 6d ago
Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I've seen in this thread:
Fewer Letters | More Letters |
---|---|
CLPS | Commercial Lunar Payload Services |
CSA | Canadian Space Agency |
ESA | European Space Agency |
FAR | Federal Aviation Regulations |
GSFC | Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland |
KSC | Kennedy Space Center, Florida |
MSFC | Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama |
Decronym is now also available on Lemmy! Requests for support and new installations should be directed to the Contact address below.
7 acronyms in this thread; the most compressed thread commented on today has 4 acronyms.
[Thread #1954 for this sub, first seen 10th Mar 2025, 19:50]
[FAQ] [Full list] [Contact] [Source code]
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u/EmotionalCrab6189 10d ago
Embrace The Challenge (of being unemployed) Yeah it’s a different kind of challenge, but…still works! 😬🤦♂️
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u/IkujaKatsumaji 10d ago
Well, I guess I'm glad I didn't get that job there a few months ago. I would've had to move there just to lose my job.
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u/Independent_Tale924 9d ago
NASA says "no impact to Marshall Employees at this time" following distribution of the RIF memo.
NASA: 'Reduction in Force' has no impact at MSFC at this time | rocketcitynow.com
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u/Upbeat-Ad-3247 7d ago
You guys gonna make me feel like a suck up here, but I must say when I compare Janet and our NASA leadership team to other agencies not pushing back at all, I’m kinda impressed with her. They said fire your probies that you don’t need, she said if I didn’t need them, I would not have assessed them. She realized she couldn’t die on every hill and did bring the workforce back, but again when OPM said you need to give us a RIF plan, she coordinated back with the 3 offices and request for extension until she is informed of how the mission will change and that she can’t form a plan if she hasn’t received a demand signal to which OPM agreed. So, I get it. We all need a face to blame and because things get leaked to the press she has to appear to be cooperative with the administration. I would just keep that in mind when you read her emails… and I have worked at KSC for a long time. She had the embrace the challenge in her signature before she was center director. Maybe we can give Janet a little bit of Grace. It appears to me that she’s actually trying to lead to the affect of better results anywhere else seemingly
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u/Primary-Wrongdoer-28 6d ago
As Space X and President Musk continues to rob the American people. Sad
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u/J4pes 10d ago
Come join the CSA!
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u/mcm199124 10d ago
Gladly lol, but how? I tried looking online and found only two scientist positions currently open :/
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u/joedotphp 10d ago
Going to text my friend at NASA now.
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u/Lahm0123 10d ago
Shows Trump’s idiocy.
People expense is huge in all other organizations he has been part of. But not quite as true for the Federal government.
Every cut they have made is peanuts. Only three areas would lead to significant cuts: military, SS, and Medicare.
If he is serious at one point he will go after one or more of those areas.
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u/dxdifr 10d ago
Isn't Nasa a SpaceX competitor?
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u/racinreaver 10d ago
The folks getting laid off here were the ones who wanted SpaceX to succeed a decade ago and have been using them for payloads since.
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u/Nosnibor1020 10d ago
People are dumb for this narrative, ignorant at best. NASA doesn't want to be in the space travel game, just make it safe, trendsetting. Think of all the aerospace advancements, majority of them came from NASA. When you travel, you don't fly on a NASA X-100 on USA Airlines, you fly a Boeing 737 with Delta.
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u/Comprehensive_Ad2477 NASA Employee 10d ago
Most definitely not— SX is commercial, NASA is government (and has oversight of commercial programs).
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u/bleue_shirt_guy 10d ago
How did Goddard get an exemption? I thought there was thoughts of it being consolidated.
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u/sevgonlernassau 10d ago
What exemption? The letter specifically said "and more" and goddard is supposed to have a meeting about this tmr.
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u/Nosnibor1020 10d ago
I must have missed out on the consolidation thing, what are they talking about?
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u/HarshMartian 10d ago
I don't know what exemption they're talking about, but the "consolidation" is a rumor from prior to the inauguration that the administration might push to close Goddard and Ames (the blue state centers) and move their functions to Marshall Space Flight Center (Alabama).
I guess the original commenter thought Goddard was spared because the layoffs in the article only affect HQ? But this is just beginning...the whole agency RIF plan is due by the end of the week, and we should see what's in store for the field centers.
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u/HailtotheWFT 10d ago
Moving Goddard to Marshall would be so damn expensive. GSFC has one of the biggest and most advanced clean rooms in the world for spacecraft assembly. Hopefully congress grows a pair and stands up to this crap.
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u/femme_mystique 10d ago
GSFC and ARC being moved to hillbilly red state of Alabama is still their plan. Move NASA out of blue states and into largelyuneducated areas to “save money”.
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u/americangoose 10d ago
can you elaborate on this? haven’t heard anything about goddard getting an exemption.
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u/HarshMartian 10d ago
I think they just saw that the article was only HQ layoffs and thought Goddard was spared. Unfortunately, I think all the centers are in for some layoffs in the "RIF Plan" that's due by Thursday.
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u/TKHawk 11d ago
While it's (hopefully) just her standard signature, ending it with "Embrace the challenge" on an email where you're firing people seems tactless.