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Next-Gen Mars Rover In Danger of Cancellation

Posted by timothy on from the infinite-possibilities-finite-taxpayers dept.

OriginalArlen writes "NASA's next-generation rover, the nuclear-powered, laser-equipped Mars Science Laboratory is reported to be at a serious risk of cancellation due to budget and schedule overruns, including non-delivery of vital parts by a subcontractor. Costs are running over $2B so far, and the already thin schedule of Mars missions planned for the next decade — with budget ring-fenced for an outer-planets flagship mission — is in danger of further cuts."

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  1. NASA's budget compared to some other federal progs by AMuse · · Score: 4, Informative

    Coincidentally, I threw together this chart yesterday when arguing with a friend about NASA's budget and how space exploration is "a huge government waste".

    http://foofus.com/amuse/public/Fedspending-2008-linechart.jpg

    (disclaimer: I do work for NASA).

    Most interestingly to me is that if NASA's budget stayed the same, it would take 47 years to spend as much money as the 2008 wall street bailout - which would be the retirement date for a brand-new, young hire.