White House Plans for NASA
Department:
The Future in Space
Teaser:
The administration's 2011 budget for NASA would axe the Constellation Program, but support the Space Station until at least 2020. The budget includes money for the development of commercially built spacecraft to carry astronauts into orbit.
Source:
SPACE.com Download time: Feb 2 2010 8:16 AM ET
President Barack Obama's 2011 budget request has effectively shut down NASA's five-year effort to return astronauts to the moon, leaving the U.S. space agency with lofty goals – but no firm deadlines – to once again send humans beyond Earth orbit.
The budget request, released today, would scrap NASA's Constellation program to build the Orion spacecraft and Ares rockets for new manned moon missions – a $9 billion investment to date. The request calls for $19 billion in funding for NASA in 2011, a slight increase from the $18.3 billion it spent in 2010.
The request does, however, pledge extra funding to extend the life of the International Space Station through at least 2020 and offers $6 billion over five years to support commercially built spaceships to launch NASA astronauts into space.…
Also see Sky and Telescope, the Scientific American, the New York Times, USA Today, and Universe Today.
The Bad Astronomer has a long and favorable analysis of the new focus for NASA. The Planetary Society is also endorsing the new budget, as does Fraser Cain of Universe Today. Space.com has an article speculating on the technology that might appear as a result of the new budget.
