Project Athena Explained: Cancelling SLS and Repurposing Gateway as a Nuclear-Powered Space Tug

President Trump nominated Jared Isaacman, for the second time, as the next NASA administrator. He plans drastic changes to NASA that will result in the agency being run more like a business, with streamlining of operations, with more “do’ers” and less managers.

In this video I explain his vision for NASA and how it could impact space startups.

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00:00 Intro
02:30 Cancel SLS (the Space Launch System)
03:50 Reorganize NASA Centres
04:54 Gateway to become a Nuclear-Powered Space Tug
05:58 Science-as-a-Service: Outsourcing Science to the Commercial Sector
08:33 Solving the Orbital Economy
09:32 Bold Exploration and Technology Development
09:58 Thoughts on the Moon
12:42 Final Thoughts
13:08 Outro

Sources:

A confidential manifesto lays out Isaacman's sweeping new vision for NASA: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/03/jared-isaacman-confidential-manifesto-nasa-00633858

NASA Administrator Nominee Would Shift Future of Space Exploration: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa-chief-pick-jared-isaacman-renominated-to-head-agency/

Capitol Hill is abuzz with talk of the “Athena” plan for NASA: https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/11/capitol-hill-is-abuzz-with-talk-of-the-athena-plan-for-nasa/

Jared’s Reponse on X to the Project Athena leak: https://x.com/rookisaacman/status/1985796145017471442

Jared’s View on the Moon (X Post): https://x.com/rookisaacman/status/1985381973741760575