NASA's associate administrator for the human exploration and operations mission directorate Doug Loverro surprised everyone when he resigned from his post with just eight days before the first manned flight of SpaceX's Crew Dragon, according to Gizmodo.
That SpaceX test will become the first time since 2011 that NASA astronauts will be launched from US soil to the International Space Station. After retiring the Space Shuttle, the agency began renting seats on Russia's Soyuz rockets operated by RosCosmos.
While there was no specific reason for the resignation, it may be coincidental to an unspecified major mistake, which Loverro hinted, based on an NPR report. He thought it was needed to push Donald Trump's order to bring astronauts back to the Moon by 2024 through the Artemis Program.
Loverro told NASA staff in a farewell message that it was a mistake that he "must bear the consequences" by himself. "My leaving is because of my personal actions, not anything we have accomplished together," Loverro added.
Meanwhile, a source who is "familiar with the situation" told NPR the issue is about a violation of NASA rules or regulations, although there was no indication of such error that prompted Loverro to end his career at the agency.
Loverro was overseeing NASA's Space Launch System Program, which is critical to Artemis. The program experienced cost overruns and delays. The first test launch was originally scheduled in 2017, but its next year schedule is recently postponed again from March to November.
While those issues began before Loverro's tenure, the abovementioned delays will then push back the planned 2024 Moon landing.
Trump appeared to be forcing NASA to hasten Artemis from its original schedule in 2028, which critics warn it may lead to catastrophic results just to have the second Moon landing as his legacy.
NASA human exploration chief resigns days before SpaceX Crew Dragon's first manned flight since 2011
The Washington Post also reported that he may have broken procurement rules in the course of NASA's efforts to develop a lunar lander for the 2024 mission. While Loverro told Washington Post that the issue "had nothing to do with Commercial Crew, but with moving fast on Artemis." Loverro added that he does not want to go more in detail.
Loverro's departure was still not apparent during a meeting on Tuesday between Vice President Mike Pence and NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine. Meanwhile, according to Politico, Loverro denied any disagreements with Bridenstine or safety issues with the SpaceX launch as reasons for his resignation. However, there were rumors that it was due to "a pretext for Bridenstine" to remove Loverro.
Loverro was the third associate administrator of the human exploration program since last year.
Ken Bowersox, a former astronaut who served as an acting associate administrator following Gerstenmaier's reassignment, will again hold the role in an acting capacity after Loverro stepped down.
In a memo to its staff, NASA said it has full confidence in the works of program manager Kathy Lueders and her Commercial Crew team. The agency also said the "test flight will be a historic and momentous occasion that will see the return of human spaceflight to our country" as well as the ardor the men and women of NASA to make "this mission possible."
Meanwhile, Representative Kendra Horn, the Democratic chair of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee space subcommittee told Politico that she is "deeply concerned over this sudden resignation." She added that a pattern of sudden departures during this administration has disrupted the "nation's efforts at human space flight."
