10 In July, the Senate Appropriations Committee supported the bill, which involves allocation $7,3 billion for NASA science programs in the next budget year. This decision directly rejects the proposal of the administration of Donald Trump, which provided for a reduction in funding by 47% and elimination of dozens of missions.
Bill, co-developed by Senators Jerry Moran (Republican, Kansas) and Chris Van Golen (Democrat, Maryland), was approved by a preliminary vote, but later withdrawn due to controversy, not affiliated with NASA. A final vote will be taken at a later date.
Trump's proposal includes cutting NASA's overall budget by 24% and laying off about a third of the staff. Among the missions, which should have been cancelled, – “Juno” (Jupiter), “New Horizons” (Pluto), “DaVinci” (Venus) and “OSIRIS-APEX” (asteroid probe).
Проти скорочення виступили всі сім колишніх керівників наукових програм NASA, науковці з Американського астрономічного товариства, а також члени обох партій із Planetary Science Caucus.
The Senate bill leaves NASA's overall budget flat $24,9 billion, supporting key programs like Artemis – notably the SLS rocket and the Orion capsule, which are to deliver men to the moon and, in the future, to Mars.
Окрім NASA, документ захищає фінансування інших ключових наукових установ:
- Національний науковий фонд (NSF) – $9 billion (only 0,67% зниження замість запропонованих 57%).
- Національна метеорологічна служба (NWS) - full funding to ensure public safety.
- National Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (NOAA) – satellite system support, cyber security, development of AI, population censuses and ocean resource management.
Adoption of this draft law does not yet guarantee its implementation - it must pass a vote in both houses of Congress and receive the President's signature.
Source: https://www.space.com