"I'll buy 10 of those"—NASA science chief yearns for mass-produced satellites
Closing the gap
“How in the hell do I get more science into space? That is my goal.”
Saturn's moon Enceladus peeks over the limb of Dione during a partial occultation, as seen by NASA's Cassini spacecraft on September 13, 2008. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
There are more opportunities to access space than ever, thanks to a bevy of commercial rockets, some with reusable boosters, led by SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9. So why is NASA launching fewer telescopes and planetary science missions than it did a quarter-century ago?
The answer is complex. It is not necessarily the money. The space agency’s science budget this year is $7.25 billion, roughly the same as it was in 2000, adjusted for inflation. This is despite attempts by the Trump administration to drastically reduce NASA science funding.
In the early months of his tenure, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman’s focus has been on human spaceflight...
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