NASA administrator quits post to launch career as academic

摘要

The future of the US space programme faces fresh uncertainty this week after Sean O'Keefe quit as administrator of NASA to take up a lucrative academic post. O'Keefe resigned on 13 December to pursue a job as chancellor of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, which had aggressively recruited him and offered a reported $500,000 salary. The move came as a surprise to many in the space community, who had hoped that, before he left, O'Keefe would clear up some of the more pressing problems that arose during his tenure.