spacetoday.net: O'Keefe starts work at NASA

Posted: Thu, Jan 3, 2002, 7:47 AM ET (1247 GMT)
Sean O'Keefe (White House)

Sean O'Keefe started work at NASA on Wednesday as the agency's new administrator. O'Keefe was officially sworn in as NASA's 10th administrator on December 21, one day after the US Senate confirmed his nomination to the post. Oddly, NASA didn't announce that O'Keefe has been sworn in until December 31, even though the agency issued a press release on December 26 that quoted Daniel Mulville as acting administrator, a temporary role Mulville filled after Dan Goldin left NASA in mid-November. O'Keefe's first day on the job was Wednesday, when he issued a message to NASA employees, telling them that NASA's record of "deep determination and commitment to excellence... will see us through the challenges of the coming year."