Trump Administration to Revive National Space Council

The news comes as Jared Isaacman’s nomination for NASA administrator advances to the Senate floor for a final vote.

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft ahead of a launch at Launch Complex 39A at the NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on March 14, 2025. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

The Trump administration is once again reviving the National Space Council as it pushes forward with its government and private sector-focused ambitions in low Earth orbit, on and around the moon, and on Mars.

Founded by the first Bush administration in 1989, the National Space Council is an advisory body designed to assist the president on space policy and strategy. It was revamped by President Donald Trump via executive order during his first administration in 2017.

“The Council was never formally disestablished, but it effectively ceased operation in 1993,” the order said. ”This order revives the Council and provides additional details regarding its duties and responsibilities.”

According to the order, the council is chaired by the vice president. It includes, but is not limited to, the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the secretaries of state, defense, commerce, and transportation, the director of national intelligence, and the director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Trump’s decision to revitalize the council in his second administration was confirmed by a White House official on May 9.

The Biden administration kept the council staffed, but it was seen as less influential under Vice President Kamala Harris.

This news comes just a few weeks after the Senate Science Committee approved Jared Isaacman’s nomination for NASA administrator advancement to the Senate floor for a final vote, and the release of NASA’s proposed 2026 fiscal year budget, which includes more than $7 billion for lunar exploration and adds another $1 billion for new investments for Mars-focused programs.

“This proposal includes investments to simultaneously pursue exploration of the Moon and Mars while still prioritizing critical science and technology research,” said acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro. “I appreciate the President’s continued support for NASA’s mission and look forward to working closely with the administration and Congress to ensure we continue making progress toward achieving the impossible.”

NASA has a mandate from Congress to establish a permanent human presence on or around the moon—be it a lunar base or the planned Gateway space station destined for lunar orbit—set by the NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2017, and Isaacman expressed his commitment to achieve this before communist China, which looks to make its own landing by 2030.

The Artemis II mission, which is set to send the first humans around the moon since December 1972, is slated to launch in 2026.

At the same time, a private space economy in low Earth orbit continues to grow with companies such as SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, and Blue Origin already contracted to launch satellites and people into space, and other companies such as Vast and Axiom working to put the first private space stations into orbit.

SpaceX continues to lead the way in terms of commercial capabilities, serving as the sole launch provider of astronauts to the International Space Station. The council’s restaffing comes as some politicians are concerned about conflicts of interest due to its founder, Elon Musk’s, close connection with the president.