NASA's Science Division Gets New Temporary Leaders

Recently, some big shakeups have happened in NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Mark Clampin, the head of NASA's astrophysics division, is now filling in as the temporary second-in-command for the entire science division. This is because Sandra Connelly, who used to have that job, is retiring. Mark decided to take on this role for a year to help NASA deal with some upcoming changes the new government might bring. It's a lot of work, he says, but he thinks it's important to keep science strong. Now, who will take Mark's original job? That's where Shawn Domagal-Goldman comes in. He's stepping up to lead the astrophysics division for the next year. He starts next week and is already dealing with lots of transitions and uncertainty because of the presidential switch.Switching gears to planetary science, Louise Prockter is coming on board as the temporary division director. She's had plenty of experience leading space missions and will help with big tasks like sending samples back from Mars and getting a mission to Jupiter ready. She'll start in the spring. This all comes after some other changes in the planetary science team. Lori Glaze took a job in a different part of NASA and won't be coming back. Gina DiBraccio filled in for a while but had to go back to her old job. Eric Ianson retired, and Charles Webb, who was just hired, had to step in as the temporary leader. It's been a lot of changes, and NASA plans to find someone permanently soon.