Latest news with #MarsSampleReturn
Axios
4 days ago
- Politics
- Axios
California could get hit hardest by Trump's NASA budget cuts
NASA spends an average of $3 billion annually in California on scientific missions — the highest of any state, per data from The Planetary Society, a pro-space nonprofit. Why it matters: NASA's science efforts bear the brunt of cuts to the agency in the Trump administration's proposed budget, which would slash science funding by nearly 50% to $3.9 billion. State of play: Science represents roughly 30% of NASA's budget, supporting missions like space telescopes, robotic probes and satellites that gather data about Earth's changing climate. While not always as headline-grabbing as human spaceflight, NASA's science activity has greatly enhanced our scientific understanding of both Earth and our celestial neighborhood. Threat level: Trump's proposed cuts could lead to 13,975 job losses, $1.4 billion less in science spending for California and $3.9 billion of lost economic activity. By the numbers: NASA supported 33,600 jobs in California and generated $8.3 billion per year in economic output between fiscal years 2022-2024, per a recent report. Zoom in: Missions on the chopping block include the Mars Sample Return, an ambitious joint American-European plan to collect Martian soil samples and bring them to Earth for further study. Nearly 20 active science missions would be canceled in total, representing more than $12 billion in sunk taxpayer costs, per the Planetary Society. Zoom out: Besides California, Maryland ($2 billion) and Texas ($614 million) saw the most average annual NASA science spending across fiscal 2022-24, the data shows. The big picture: Trump's proposed NASA cuts fit into a broader pattern of pulling resources away from scientific endeavors and data collection, especially involving climate change.
Axios
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Axios
How much NASA spends on science in Utah
NASA spends an average of $11 million annually in Utah on scientific missions, per data from The Planetary Society, a pro-space nonprofit. Why it matters: NASA's science efforts bear the brunt of cuts to the agency in the Trump administration's proposed budget, which would slash science funding by nearly 50% to $3.9 billion. The big picture: Science represents roughly 30% of NASA's budget, supporting missions like space telescopes, robotic probes and satellites that gather data about Earth's changing climate. While not always as headline-grabbing as human spaceflight, NASA's science activity has greatly enhanced our scientific understanding of both Earth and our celestial neighborhood. By the numbers: NASA supported 2,375 jobs in Utah and generated $486.6 million in economic output and $17.2 million in state tax revenue in fiscal year 2023, per a state report. Over 60 suppliers in the state have contributed to the agency's Artemis moon exploration program. The intrigue: The proposed cuts come as some Utah officials want to position the state as a leader in space innovation. Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill in March appropriating $1 million to study the feasibility of a spaceport in Utah for potential space exploration. Zoom out: California (about $3 billion), Maryland ($2 billion) and Texas ($614 million) saw the most average annual NASA science spending across fiscal 2022-2024, the data shows. Zoom in: Missions on the chopping block in President Trump's NASA budget include the Mars Sample Return, an ambitious joint American-European plan to collect Martian soil samples and bring them to Earth for further study. Nearly 20 active science missions would be canceled in total, the Planetary Society says, representing more than $12 billion in taxpayer investments. What they're saying: A chief concern, Planetary Society chief of space policy Casey Dreier tells Axios, is that already paid-for probes and telescopes would be deactivated even though they're still delivering valuable data. "They keep returning great science for the very fractional cost to keep the lights on. And a lot of these will just be turned off and left to tumble in space," Dreier says
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA captures images of 12-mile-tall volcano on this nearby planet
A NASA orbiter has captured a stunning image of a giant volcano on Mars. The panorama, captured on May 2 by NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter, shows Arsia Mons, one of the largest volcanos on the Red Planet. MORE: Hawaii's Kilauea volcano shoots lava 1,000 feet in the air in latest eruption In the photo, the volcano, which is 12 miles tall, can be seen peeking through the planet's morning clouds just before dawn. Arsia Mons -- along with two other volcanoes -- form the Tharsis Mountains, according to NASA. This is the first time an image of one of the volcanos has been captured on the planet's horizon, according to NASA. The view offers the same perspective of Mars that astronauts have of Earth when looking down from the International Space Station, NASA said. MORE: Scientists solve mystery of 'zombie' volcano displaying signs of eruption for decades The Odyssey, designed to study the Martian surface, was launched in 2001 and is the longest-running mission orbiting another planet, according to the space agency. In 2023, Odyssey began pursuing high-altitude images of the Martian horizon, rotating 90 degrees while in orbit to capture the unique images. The angle allowed researchers to better see the layers of cloud and dust and observe changes over the course of seasons, according to NASA. MORE: NASA exploring two lower-cost options to go forward with Mars Sample Return mission "We're seeing some really significant seasonal differences in these horizon images," NASA planetary scientist Michael Smith said in a statement. "It's giving us new clues to how Mars' atmosphere evolves over time."
Axios
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Axios
NASA's Arizona science spend
NASA spends hundreds of millions of dollars per state on average annually through its scientific missions, and Arizona is among the country's biggest recipients, a recent analysis shows. Why it matters: The space agency's science efforts bear the brunt of the cuts in the Trump administration's proposed budget, down nearly 50% to $3.9 billion. The big picture: Science represents about 30% of NASA's overall budget and includes missions like space telescopes, robotic probes and satellites that gather data about Earth's changing climate. While not always as headline-grabbing as human spaceflight, NASA's science activity has greatly enhanced our understanding of Earth and our celestial neighborhood. By the numbers: From 2022-2024, Arizona averaged the 10th most direct investment from NASA science spending in the country at $120 million per year, and had the ninth most overall spending last year with nearly $107 million, per data from The Planetary Society, a pro-space nonprofit. Nearly half the money in that three-year period ($58 million) went to Arizona's 7th Congressional District, home to the University of Arizona's main campus. Threat level: The Trump administration's proposed budget for the 2026 fiscal year would cut nearly $57 million in spending from the state. That would "severely curtail research" at University of Arizona and Arizona State University, The Planetary Society warns, putting 566 jobs at risk and jeopardizing $158 million in economic activity. Zoom out: California (About $3 billion), Maryland ($2 billion), Texas ($614 million), Virginia ($612 million) and Alabama ($586 million) saw the most NASA science spending on average annually across fiscal 2022-2024. Each is home to major NASA facilities. Those numbers represent obligations involving "research grants, contracts and cooperative agreements," the group says. Zoom in: Missions on the chopping block in Trump's NASA budget include the New Horizons spacecraft (first launched to study Pluto and now in the outer solar system) and Mars Sample Return, an ambitious joint American-European plan to collect Martian soil samples gathered by the Perseverance rover and bring them to Earth for further study. Nearly 20 active science missions would be canceled in total, the Planetary Society says, representing more than $12 billion in taxpayer investments. What they're saying: A chief concern, Planetary Society chief of space policy Casey Dreier tells Axios, is that already paid-for probes and telescopes would be deactivated even though they're still delivering valuable data, wasting taxpayer dollars already spent to launch and run them. "This is the part where you get pennies on the dollar return," Dreier says. "They keep returning great science for the very fractional cost to keep the lights on. And a lot of these will just be turned off and left to tumble in space."
eNCA
06-06-2025
- Politics
- eNCA
Renowned Mars expert says Trump-Musk axis risks dooming mission
WASHINGTON - Robert Zubrin quite literally wrote the book on why humanity should go to Mars -- so why has the renowned aerospace engineer soured on Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur leading the charge? In an interview, the 73-year-old founder of the Mars Society delivered a blistering critique, accusing the world's richest person of undermining the mission through divisive politics and a bleak vision of the Red Planet as an escape from Earth rather than a journey of hope. "On one level, he's absolutely instrumental in opening up this opportunity to get humans to Mars, both through the development of Starship and also the inspiration that has been caused," Zubrin told AFP, referring to Musk's prototype rocket. "But for it to succeed, it has to go beyond these -- this initiative cannot be seen as a Musk hobbyhorse or a Trump hobbyhorse -- it must be seen, at a minimum, as America's program, or preferably the Free World's program." Zubrin's 1996 book "The Case for Mars," since updated numerous times, laid out a practical blueprint for reaching and settling the Red Planet using existing technologies and local resources -- with the ultimate goal of transforming the atmosphere for long-term human habitation. - Supporter turned critic - The book won praise from Musk himself, who once posed with Zubrin at SpaceX's Starship facility in Texas and called it "worth reading." But today, Zubrin -- who co-authored the Mars Direct plan in 1990, has published hundreds of papers, and invented several advanced propulsion concepts -- sees troubling signs. While he described Musk as a "tremendously talented and forceful person," he said his success has bred "hubris and arrogance," comparing him to Napoleon as he thumped his fist for emphasis. He was especially critical of Musk's embrace of Donald Trump during the 2024 election and his role as the administration's chainsaw-wielding cost slasher. "This combination of Trump and Musk is not going to persist forever," Zubrin warned, in an interview conducted before the pair's relationship imploded Thursday in a spectacular public row. "And if this program is identified as their deal, it will be crushed as soon as opposing forces have sufficient power." During their fight on Thursday, Trump called Musk "crazy" and threatened to terminate his government contracts worth billions of dollars. Zubrin also condemned Trump's efforts to gut NASA's space science budget -- a move he sees as fundamentally at odds with the exploratory spirit of the Mars endeavour. The Mars Sample Return mission -- aimed at retrieving specimens collected by the Perseverance rover -- is among the biggest science projects on the chopping block. Although the mission, developed with the European Space Agency, has suffered delays and budget overruns, Zubrin said eliminating it entirely rather than reforming it would be a mistake. "This threatens to brand this program with the mark of Cain of original sin -- that this program is born with the blood of the murder of Space Science on it." - Creative outpost - Where Zubrin still sees promise is in Starship -- Musk's massive prototype rocket aimed at making life multiplanetary, though the vessel's repeated test explosions show there's a long way to go. He diverges with Musk over how it should be used. Starship is far too large to serve as a Mars ascent vehicle, Zubrin said. The Mars expert has proposed a vessel he calls Starboat -- a compact lander that could shuttle between planetary surfaces and orbit, using a fraction of the propellant and surface power. But his sharpest critiques are philosophical. He rejects Musk's portrayal of Mars as a refuge from a dying Earth -- a vision that echoes the works of science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. "We're not going to Mars out of despair," Zubrin said. "We're going to Mars out of hope... to establish new branches of human civilisation which will add their creative capacity to that of humanity as a whole." He sees Mars not as a refuge but renewal, where a campaign beginning with robotic missions in the late 2020s and culminating in human landings by 2033 could inspire bipartisan support, showcase American ingenuity and restore national purpose. "If we do the kind of program that I advocated... we will once again, as we did in Apollo, astonish the world with what free people can do," he said. "We'll make it clear that freedom, not authoritarianism, is the future of the human race." by Issam Ahmed
