WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Co-Chair of the Senate Aerospace Caucus, met with Clayton Turner, Director of the NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, at Sen. Warner’s office in Washington, D.C.

In the meeting, Sen. Warner and Director Turner discussed NASA Langley’s FY20 budget as well as NASA’s work in unmanned systems. Additionally, they spoke about importance of educating and inspiring the next generation to continue NASA’s work, and Director Turner provided an update on the Artemis program – a mission to land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024, using innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before.

“From the earliest days of the Space Program, NASA Langley has played a crucial role supporting NASA’s mission,” said Sen. Warner. “Director Turner and I agree that Congress must continue to support the important work that’s happening at the facility, as well as the business ecosystem of innovative aerospace companies that’s developed in Virginia, and I’m committed to fighting for those priorities in the Senate.”

This meeting follows the September approval of the FY2020 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations Act by the Senate Committee on Appropriations. This legislation would determine NASA Langley’s budget for the next fiscal year, and would authorize funding for several NASA priorities, including the Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory Pathfinder Mission (CLARREO-PF) – a climate change monitoring technology that is scheduled to launch to the International Space Station in 2023.

Sen. Warner has advocated for policies that invest in long-term research and development in aeronautics. Last year, he and Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) introduced the Aeronautics Innovation Act to help boost innovation, research, and development in the aeronautics industry by providing a five-year funding commitment to supplement research and advance innovation in the field.

Turner was appointed Director of NASA Langley in September 2019. As center director, he leads a diverse group of about 3,400 civil servant and contractor scientists, researchers, engineers and support staff, who work to make revolutionary improvements to aviation, expand understanding of Earth’s atmosphere, and develop technology for space exploration. From 2015 until his appointment as director, Turner served as Langley’s deputy center director. He is the first African-American to lead NASA Langley in the center’s history.

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