William Atkins
Sunday, 01 March 2009 22:16
Science -
Space
Page 3 of 5
U.S. space policy analyst John Logsdon, with the National Air and Space Museum (Washington, D.C.). stated, “
The budget doesn't say a whole lot about any specific system. I wouldn't interpret the absence of the words 'Constellation', 'Ares', and 'Orion' one way or another. That's really up to the new management team, when it gets there." [New Scientist: "
Obama backs Moon return in NASA budget"]
In whatever way the new manned space program is organized, by officially stating that the Shuttle program will retire in 2010, it opens up the way for NASA to spend approximately $3 billion per year on the new Constellation program, rather than on the old Shuttle program.
However, the 2010 retirement plan of the shuttles will cost NASA and its contractor companies the loss of thousands of skilled and dedicated workers. This layoff is happening because fewer workers are needed to maintain and operate the new Constellation fleet of Orion capsules when compared to the Space Shuttle fleet.
However, on the brighter side, the Obama Administration has increased NASA’s budget to $18.7 billion for fiscal year 2010, partly to increase the gap between the retirement of manned Shuttle flights and the start of manned Orion flights, which are scheduled to begin in 2015.
The enlarged budget for 2010 is an increase of $2.4 billion over the previous approved 2010 budget amount.
The additional money would provide for expansion and development of space-based research programs such as the deployment of a global-climate-change research and monitoring system, along with programs involving manned and unmanned (robotic) missions.
Much of NASA’s money for 2010 would take care of expenses for the last year of the Space Shuttle program and development of the new Constellation program.
Page four provides additional comments.
