The agency will have to revise the budget in a limited time
NASA’s Mars sample return mission is in danger of being canceled entirely after the Senate Appropriations Committee offered its recommendations on a fiscal year 2024 spending bill.
These recommendations do not include everything that NASA hoped for. The CJS (Commerce, Justice, and Science) Spending Bill, which allocates funds for NASA and several other government agencies, was considered by the committee on July 13, 2023.
NASA will have to shrink
The bill provides funding for NASA’s ongoing Artemis lunar program and other research initiatives, but cuts the space agency’s budget for planetary exploration by more than half a billion dollars.
First of all, NASA’s ambitious mission to return from Mars geological samples collected by the Perseverance rover was at risk. The report expresses concern over ongoing mission rescheduling and rising costs. The committee’s report also expresses concern that the return project is taking precedence over other NASA missions.
The agency was given 180 days after the bill was passed to provide an annual breakdown of the mission’s budget, which is in line with its earlier $5.3 billion plan. The mission could be canceled if the space agency fails to meet the deadline or cut costs in line with the proposed budget.
