Congress ctrl-Zs bulk of proposed cuts to NASA science
- Reference: 1767705954
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2026/01/06/nasa_science_budget_boost/
- Source link:
The " [1]joint explanatory statement " [PDF] is a little light on detail, but restores most of NASA's science budget. The FY2026 Request was $3.9 billion, down from the FY2025 Enacted figure of $7.33 billion, which was described as [2]"an extinction-level event" for science by some observers.
The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act has brought the amount back to $7.25 billion, doubtless to the relief of NASA and its new Administrator, Jared Isaacman. While this still represents a cut from previous levels, and inflation will further reduce its purchasing power, the reduction is far less severe than initially proposed.
[3]
There is, however, a slight reduction in Exploration budget, for which $8.31 billion was requested, and $7.78 billion was allocated under the agreement. That said, the Trump administration's desire to kill off the Space Launch System in favor of commercial options has been muted.
[4]
[5]
The document states: "The agreement rejects the proposed termination of the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion programs following Artemis III." It also prohibits raiding funds from the Artemis Moon to Mars Transportation account "unless and until a commercial alternative is demonstrated to meet or exceed the capabilities of the SLS and Orion systems."
The agreement between the US House and Senate Committees still needs to pass the whole House and Senate, meaning that the uncertainty surrounding NASA's budget is not over.
[6]Isaacman finally confirmed as NASA boss after Trump derailed first attempt
[7]NASA nominee 'committed' to uprooting Shuttle Discovery for Houston trophy piece
[8]Rosalind Franklin rover catches a break as NASA reaffirms commitment
[9]NASA pares back Boeing's Starliner deal after 2024 calamity
Also not mentioned in the agreement is the fate or identity of the "space vehicle" to be transferred to Houston. Widely expected to be Space Shuttle Discovery, which is housed at the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia, the move has proved controversial. As 2025 drew to a close, US Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) [10]stated that Isaacman had "committed to follow Sen. Cornyn's provision of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act [OBBA], now law, to move the Space Shuttle Discovery in one piece from Virginia."
The OBBA does not mention Discovery by name. Instead, it calls for a space vehicle that "has flown into space" and "has carried astronauts."
[11]
In a [12]recent interview , Isaacman did not confirm that Discovery had been selected for the move. Instead, he cautioned that the relocation would have to be within budget and ensure "the safety of the vehicle."
He said: "And if we can't do that, you know what? We've got spacecraft that are going around the Moon with Artemis II, III, IV, and V. One way or another, we're going to make sure the Johnson Space Center gets their historic spacecraft right where it belongs." ®
Get our [13]Tech Resources
[1] https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20260105/Division%20A%20Commerce%20Justice%20Science.pdf
[2] https://www.planetary.org/articles/nasa-science-cuts-discussion
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aV1ADay3IhlD6cYrxJ7DHAAAAtU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aV1ADay3IhlD6cYrxJ7DHAAAAtU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aV1ADay3IhlD6cYrxJ7DHAAAAtU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/18/isaacman_given_nod_as_nasa/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/02/isaacman_discovery_relocation/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2025/11/27/nasa_support_exomars/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2025/11/25/nasa_starliner_contract/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/02/isaacman_discovery_relocation/
[11] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aV1ADay3IhlD6cYrxJ7DHAAAAtU&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[12] https://youtu.be/nR3L4CdHeYg
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Learnin' is the Devil
I'm sorry, but Walt Disney have stated that Donald Duck is disinclined to acquiesce your request!
Re: Learnin' is the Devil
Yea, he should have asked The Duck Avenger!
Re: Learnin' is the Devil
A Donald Duck administration would be filled with many fewer quacks.
Re: Learnin' is the Devil
You win todays internet
Re: Learnin' is the Devil
" dem pro fessers doin all the sciencin and the vaccinatin gonna bring the devil down on us. Save us Donald! "
Too late. I is here… the truth is I never left you — my people !
I know this is the wrong place...
...but news just jumped into my face that Walmart is ditching the US, at least partially in smaller suburban areas? This is so "can be true, or not" level that I have to ask here (too)...
Is this a windows ctrl-z or a unix ctrl-z? they're quite different, rendering the title somewhat confusing.
windows ctrl-z or a unix ctrl-z?
I too was wondering CP/M EOF or default Unix tty suspend binding (which sends SIGTSTP to the process group) .
If only Congress could find the testicular fortitude to send SIGSTOP, SIGQUIT or SIGTERM to the whole miserable administration. Signal #9 is too much to ask for I suppose.
Re: windows ctrl-z or a unix ctrl-z?
What about Halt Catch Fire (HCF)?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halt_and_Catch_Fire_(computing)
Re: windows ctrl-z or a unix ctrl-z?
They tried that at the Capitol five years ago today, and then the American voters rebooted it.
Yes.
Stall tactics
"Also not mentioned in the agreement is the fate or identity of the "space vehicle" to be transferred to Houston"
Just smile and wave boys, smile and wave. 3 more years until you can quietly drop the text altogether.
Re: Stall tactics
Funny.
Oh.. wait, you're serious and assuming there will be elections.
Re: Stall tactics
I'm sure there will be "elections"...
Re: Stall tactics
If we last that long!
---------> Would not surprise me!
There would be plenty of budget available for NASA ...
if the USA spent less $$ invading or bombing other countries or [1]supporting genocide . But, I suppose, senators like bringing military spend budget to their state.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_support_for_Israel_in_the_Gaza_war
Re: There would be plenty of budget available for NASA ...
Funny how many senators prefer military spending to feeding, clothing or educating their constituents. I wonder why that is?
Re: There would be plenty of budget available for NASA ...
They favor military spending because our constitution allows them to do that. Feeding, clothing or educating aren't really things that our constitution intended for them to do. You can argue (or downvote me) but our country's structure was intended for those things to be a state-by-state kind of thing. You can even disagree if that's they way it should be done but that was the intent.
Also, Senator's were originally intended to be representatives for the state governments. Up until 1913 and the 17th Amendment, Senators were intended to be elected by state legislators in accordance with Article I, section 3 of the constitution.
So, this is way too many words to say that the US government is operating way outside of the original scope but, sadly, military spending was directly in that scope. (Even though I don't really agree with that particular monster either)
Re: There would be plenty of budget available for NASA ...
To provide for the general welfare? I know it's in the preamble but the preamble is a statement of the purpose, philosophy, and intent, of a document. If the states fail to do this, as they have and continue do it would then fall on the federal government to uphold this principle. Feeding and education not only provide for the general welfare they are directly responsible for the world leading economic powerhouse the US became and for at least the near future still is. And in most states it is illegal to be naked in public.
While the original intent of the constitution was to grant state governments a great deal of power in deciding how they were run over time it became obvious that some of that power had to be overridden by the federal government to fix serious problems created by the states. There are numerous examples of this with the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 17th amendments passed to correct these problems. The 17th amendment took away the ability of state legislators to appoint federal senators and gave the citizens of the states the responsibility of voting for the senators that would represent them. While this did reduce the power of the state's governments I would argue that it simply moved that power to the state's citizens and I don't think this is a bad thing. All of these are excellent examples of why a mechanism for to fix problems in the original constitution was included and the difficulty of getting one passed (by 2/3rds voter in both houses of congress and states) helps insure that for the most part at least that these changes are truly necessary.
Business as usual
This is the same old same old.
It's not a Trump thing, Congress just ALWAYS does the opposite of what the president wants with NASA appropriations. If he'd doubled the budget, they would have cut it by 75%
NASA's a political football they can kick in the president's face without major repercussions.
Re: Business as usual
It's a _____________ thing when _____________ proposes massive budget cuts to NASA, the National Science Foundation, research universities, national laboratories, international collaborations, etc.
Trump happens to be the most guilty party in anti-science cuts over the past decade. So it's a Trump thing.
Learnin' is the Devil
dem pro fessers doin all the sciencin and the vaccinatin gonna bring the devil down on us
Save us Donald!