Acting NASA Administrator Duffy Update – July 25, 2025

Keith’s note: Duffy’s first message had a strange farewell at the end. Full message below:

Fifty-six years ago this week, American heroes Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins returned home after completing the most daring mission in human history — Apollo 11. When they planted our flag on the Moon, they didn’t just make history – they defined American greatness.

That legacy belongs to all of us. And now, it’s our turn to carry it forward. Thanks to the renewed leadership of President Trump, NASA is back — and Artemis is the mission that will define the next era of American space exploration. Like Apollo, Artemis must inspire the nation. Every American should know it, support it, and feel a part of it. This is not just a mission for NASA — this is a mission for the country.

We’re not just going back to the Moon — we’re going to stay. And from there, we set our sights on Mars. This will be a golden age of innovation, national purpose, and American dominance. Our work continues to capture the imagination of the world — and it must start by reigniting that spark within ourselves.

Take a moment to remember what first pulled you toward the stars. What was it — an image of Earth from space, a model rocket, a classroom telescope, or the echo of “one small step for man” — that stirred your imagination and pulled you toward the stars? That spark — that deep sense of wonder and possibility — is what brought many of us to NASA. It’s what built this agency. It’s what built the future.

And yet today, that sense of wonder competes with a culture that seems to have forgotten how to dream. Monumental discoveries barely make a ripple in the public consciousness.

Events that should stop the world in its tracks come and go, overshadowed by noise, outrage, and endless distraction.

We feel this drift not just out there in the world, but even here. Bureaucracy piles up. Focus wavers. Missions blur. But we, of all people, cannot afford to lose sight of the horizon. Because space exploration is more than just science and engineering — it is a civilizational act. It affirms that we still believe in the future, still believe in progress, still believe that there is something worth reaching for beyond ourselves.

That’s why I’m honored President Trump has asked me to lead NASA. I see this not as a ceremonial role, but as a mandate to restore our focus — to recenter our work on what truly matters. I’m excited to join you in that mission. And I look forward to meeting many of you in person soon, as we recommit ourselves to the bold journey that brought us here in the first place.

Here are a few highlights from across the agency this week, about what we’ve accomplished so far that will propel us towards our goal:

Wednesday, we saw TRACERS (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites) launch to demonstrate and expand American preeminence in space science research and technology. The TRACERS satellites will move us forward in decoding space weather and further our understanding of the connection between Earth and the Sun. This mission will yield breakthroughs that will advance our pursuit of the Moon, and subsequently, Mars.

Thursday, NASA proudly hosted Ambassador of Senegal to the United States, Abdoul Wahab Haidara, Department of State Senior Bureau Official, Bureau of African Affairs, Jonathan Pratt, and Director general of the Senegalese space agency (ASES), Maram Kaire at NASA Headquarters as they became the 56th nation to sign the Artemis Accords, affirming their commitment to global cooperation in space.

The X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft began its taxi tests, its last set of ground checks before the first flight. For the next several weeks, the X-59 team will work with NASA’s own pilot Nils Larson to gradually increase the speed of taxi tests, monitoring critical systems.

Monday, our High-Performance Spaceflight Computing project achieved the significant “tape out” milestone, completing the design phase and sending NASA’s advanced microchip to manufacturing. This multi-year collaboration between NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Microchip Technology Inc. represents engineering excellence to ensure the microprocessor meets the demands of future space missions. Through continued government-industry collaboration, we are not only addressing the growing need for reliable, high-performance computing in space and commercial applications—we are also strengthening the capabilities of our industry partners to deliver these advanced technologies.

Preparations continued this week ahead of the launch of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 to the International Space Station, scheduled no earlier than 12:09 p.m. EDT Thursday, July 31. On Saturday, July 26, NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov are scheduled to arrive at NASA Kennedy, to complete their final prelaunch preparations.

NASA completed the final ground system verification and validation test for Artemis II. Our Exploration Ground Systems Program tested a new liquid hydrogen sphere tank, which holds one of the cryogenic propellants used to power the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket at Launch Complex 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Artemis launch team successfully practiced flowing liquid hydrogen to ensure they can safely flow the minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit, super-cool liquid gas to the mobile launcher and SLS during launch countdown.

Tank you,

Sean Duffy