Wanted by NASA: Space Telescope Director with Spy Credentials
The leader of the James Webb Space Telescope must have clearance that allows access to the highest level of classified information, according to a NASA want ad

9-17-2014 |By Clara Moskowitz

Conspiracy theorists may wonder, why does NASA’s next major telescope director need top secret clearance? The space agency recently posted a want ad for a person to lead its James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) program, and in addition to aerospace engineering credentials and management experience, the candidate must have the highest possible level of security credentials.

NASA says the requirement is standard, although the ad raised some eyebrows in the security community. “It seems quite unusual,” says former CIA analyst Allen Thomson, who speculates that the clearance might allow the JWST director to coordinate using NASA telescope technology for National Reconnaissance Office satellites. Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists’ Project on Government Secrecy noted the requirement on his Secrecy News blog. “My first reaction was surprise that this was among the key requirements for the position,” Aftergood says. “And it’s a sign of just how closely the civilian space program is intertwined with national security.”

The JWST director will be required to have access to Top Secret and Sensitive Compartmented Information—the highest level of classified information, derived from intelligence sources and methods, Aftergood says. “It potentially covers a lot of ground.” To receive such a security clearance, a person might have to undergo polygraph testing, an oral interview and a thorough background check. “It raises a concern because of the potential to exclude some highly qualified candidates. There are some distinguished scientists who may be unwilling to submit to the security clearance process and the whole apparatus that comes with it, which can include such things as prepublication review requirements, intrusive background investigations and other moderately unpleasant features.”

We-e-ell — if, as Aftergood apparently predicts, they’re too thin-skinned to handle the screening, I don’t think I’d want ‘em to touch anything at NASA.