NASA Executive Resigns Days Before 1st Astronaut Launch in Years

NASA’s human exploration department boss resigned just a few days before the organization’s first astronaut mission in over 10 years from the Kennedy Space Center, was set to launch.
NASA notified its workers of this news on Tuesday morning.
Douglas Loverro joined NASA in October 2019. He was a former Defence Department and National Reconnaissance Office manager who specialized in important space security issues for over 3 decades. The resignation is effective from Monday.
Bob Jacobs, NASA’s official spokesman, announced that Loverro had decided to step down. However, he declined to answer further questions, stating that the agency could not discuss personnel-related issues.
Only 8 days remains for SpaceX’s first astronaut launch mission under the commercial crew program of NASA. The lift off will take place on May 27.
Apart from overseeing Boeing and SpaceX’s efforts to carry NASA’s astronauts to the ISS, Loverro was also heading the Artemis moon-landing mission. NASA had previously announced the 3 winning corporate teams who were awarded the contracts to develop crucial lunar landers to be used by the astronauts.
Loverro’s deputy Ken Bowersox, who is a former space shuttle commander, is set to take over as acting associate administrator of human exploration and operations.