Chief scientist gap

摘要

The post of chief scientist at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington DC is to remain vacant after the administration of President Barack Obama withdrew its nomination of marine geochemist Scott Doney on 24 January — almost 18 months after Doney was put forward for the role. US Senator David Vitter (Republican, Louisiana) had put a hold on the confirmation process in protest at the administrations decision to issue a drilling moratorium after the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The agency has not had a chief scientist since 1996.