NASA’s Long-Term Mission Faces Uncertain Future Amid Trump Budget Cuts
The White House’s proposal to slash nearly 25 percent from NASA’s budget would have far-reaching consequences for the agency’s long-term mission. The proposed funding plan would cut the agency’s budget from $24.8 billion to $18.8 billion, marking the smallest NASA budget since 1961. Adjusted for inflation, this would represent a significant reduction in the agency’s resources.
The proposed cuts would have a ripple effect on various aspects of NASA’s mission, including its robotic science missions and technology development. The agency’s funding for these areas would be halved next year, with the White House proposing to scale back research on the International Space Station. Furthermore, the budget would turn off spacecraft already exploring the Solar System and cancel NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft after two more missions in favor of procuring lower-cost commercial transportation to the Moon and Mars.
The SLS Rocket and Orion Spacecraft: A Necessary Evil?
The SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft have been targets for proponents of commercial spaceflight for several years. These single-use vehicles are expensive, with Moon missions on SLS and Orion projected to cost more than $4 billion per flight. This raises questions about whether these vehicles will ever be able to support a lunar space station or Moon base where astronauts can routinely rotate in and out on long-term expeditions.
Reusable rockets and spaceships offer a better long-term solution, but they won’t be ready to ferry people to the Moon for a while longer. The Trump administration proposes flying SLS and Orion two more times on NASA’s Artemis II and Artemis III missions, then retiring the vehicles. Artemis II’s rocket is currently being assembled at Kennedy Space Center in Florida for liftoff next year, carrying a crew of four around the far side of the Moon.
Five Cuts or Cancellations that Could Do the Most Damage
Ars has compiled a list of five cuts or cancellations in the White House’s budget request that could do the most damage to NASA’s long-term mission. These include:
- Zeroing out nuclear propulsion: The Trump administration proposes to cancel a nuclear thermal propulsion demonstration called DRACO, eliminating all of NASA’s funding for nuclear thermal and nuclear electric propulsion.
- Terminating operating missions: The budget request would cancel at least 19 NASA science missions that are currently operating in space, including the Juno mission, New Horizons probe, OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, and Chandra X-ray Observatory.
- Sticking it to the Europeans, again: This budget proposal would end US contributions to support Europe’s Rosalind Franklin Mars rover, an agreement that the two space agencies completed just last year.
- Scaling back ISS operations: NASA officials are already studying how to cope with the Trump administration’s proposed 26 percent cut to the agency’s budget for operating the International Space Station and transporting crew and cargo to and from the research outpost.
- Cuts to human research: The White House proposes cutting the budget from this area of research from $151 million to $40 million in fiscal year 2026, potentially delaying the development of life support systems that could be used on long-duration, multi-year journeys to and from Mars.
The Impact on NASA’s Long-Term Mission
If enacted, the White House’s fiscal year 2026 budget request would be the largest budget cut in NASA’s history. The agency’s supporters and the space science community are concerned about the impact of these cuts on NASA’s long-term mission, including its plans for human exploration of the Moon and Mars.
The Trump administration’s decision to withdraw his nomination of Jared Isaacman, a widely respected businessman and commercial astronaut, probably will not help NASA’s case in seeking to counter Vought’s cuts. Without an empowered political appointee at the helm of NASA, the agency’s supporters and the space science community don’t have a strong voice at the table in the Trump administration.
It will be up to Congress to try to restore some of the funding that the Trump administration proposes to eliminate in the fiscal year 2026 budget request. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has already signaled he will seek to claw back funding for the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft and the Gateway lunar space station targeted for cancellation by the White House. However, Cruz had little to say about restoring funding for space science, Earth science, or tech development.
Conclusion
The Trump administration’s budget proposal would have far-reaching consequences for NASA’s long-term mission. The agency’s supporters and the space science community are concerned about the impact of these cuts on NASA’s ability to explore space and advance scientific knowledge. It remains to be seen how Congress will respond to the White House’s budget request, but one thing is clear: NASA’s future is uncertain, and its fate hangs in the balance.