NASA To Face $1.3 Billion Cut Next Year Under Sequestration

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NASA To Face $1.3 Billion Cut Next Year Under Sequestration

Posted by samzenpus on Sunday September 16, 2012 @05:41AM from the more-for-less dept.

littlesparkvt writes "A budget forecast that was released on Friday shows that the defense department isn't the only department getting hammered: NASA is as well, if the automatic budget cuts happen. According to Nature magazine, NASA will lose '$417 million from its science budget, $346 for space operations, $309 for exploration, $246 for cross agency support, among other cuts.'"

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Budget cuts should not be imposed by mostwanted678452056 · 2012-09-16 05:43 · Score: 4, Informative

It is because of NASA we are enjoying the fruits of GPS and other such technical marvels. I don't think there should the any more budget cuts.
1. Re:Budget cuts should not be imposed by Richard_at_work · 2012-09-16 06:15 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  I think the DoD would have something to say about your assertion, since GPS was their toy from day one, ad it was under their budget that the constellation was launched and maintained...
2. Re:Budget cuts should not be imposed by tnk1 · 2012-09-16 06:27 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  Oh the AF/Navy have their own launch vehicles and launch facilities now? I guess I wasn't keeping up.
  They have had their own launch facilities for years. Vandenberg AFB and the AF operated launch complexes at Cape Canaveral.
How fucking sad. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · 2012-09-16 06:00 · Score: 3, Informative

NASA is where all the money should go.
Re:How fucking great! by demachina · 2012-09-16 15:33 · Score: 4, Informative

I'm not generally one to defend NASA but they've had a pretty huge role in earth observation satellites, Landsat for example. They've had a huge impact on environmental issues, deforestation, climate change, resource usage, monitoring the destruction of our our ozone layer by CFC's and helping to stop it, this list goes on for a while.
Their manned space program has moslty been a huge wast of time and money but their earth observation programs have been DOING EXACTLY THE THINGS YOU SEEM TO BE WHINING FOR.
It pretty delusional to think you should basically stop doing anything ground breaking until you've solved every problem on Earth. YOU WILL NEVER SOLVE EVERY PROBLEM ON EARTH. If you manage to insure everyone is well fed and, and no one dies of diseases, chances are you will just cause a population spike that will push a bunch of people in to starvation or further deplete the earth's resources trying to feed them all.
Its still a little over the horizon but it wont be that much longer until we start deplete the Earth's easily accessible mineral resources at which point pretty much the first thing you are going to be wishing for is a robust space program so you can start mining near earth asteroids for them.

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@de_machina