Bill Nelson

American politician and attorney (born 1942)

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Born 1942 · age 84United States

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United States rank#61
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39 languages
Cross-language footprint
Rank in United States
#61
Politicians
Age
84
Born 1942

Summary

Updated 2026-05-29

Floridian politician and ex-astronaut who rocketed aboard Space Shuttle Columbia in 1986 as a sitting congressman, then spent 18 years in the Senate before running NASA from 2021 to 2025.

Biography

About

Clarence William Nelson II is an American politician, attorney, and former astronaut who served from 2001 to 2019 as a United States senator from Florida and from 2021 to 2025 as the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). A member of the Democratic Party, Nelson served from 1979 to 1991 as a U.S. representative from Florida's Space Coast, and from 1972 to 1978 as a member of the Florida House of Representatives. In January 1986, he became the second sitting member of Congress to fly in space, after Senator Jake Garn, when he served as a payload specialist on…

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