Trump Administration Proposes 23 Percent Budget Cut To NASA, Slashing Its Science Funding By Half

In the proposal, which was released on April 3, the White House detailed plans to cut the space agency’s budget by 23 percent compared to last year, and the science budget alone by 47 percent, from $7.25 billion to $3.9 billion.

Many have linked the proposal to Artemis II; as the crew is about to reach the farthest humans have traveled into the cosmos, NASA is losing billions of dollars. The budget actually increases the funding for the Artemis program, the proposed plans for a lunar base, and more lunar infrastructure by $1.015 billion, although possibly not as much as will be needed for those to succeed.

It is the plans for science and technology, from the outer Solar System to low-Earth orbit, that are on the chopping block. The budget is planning to cut 40 NASA missions, as well as targeting several projects that involve in-space sustainability. The budget calls these projects "frivolous", but they are a crucial step for further exploration and resource utilization, and in a way, they are ways to be more fiscally responsible. Efforts like refueling satellites, for example, improve their longevity and what they can do.

Last year's budget proposal was similarly devastating for NASA, with many missions expected to be canceled. Some cuts were pushed forward before congressional approval, in a move that has been condemned as illegal. Most of it was reversed by Congress when the budget was eventually approved, although some missions were still canceled, such as the Mars Sample Return. For unclear reasons, this new budget cancels it once again.

It is certainly possible that Congress will reverse these cuts too, but the science community is in dismay and has condemned this as an attack on NASA, placing more uncertainty on the future of the space agency and its workforce at a pivotal moment.

“This is a critical period for the U.S. space agency to execute on the ambitious plans to lead the world in science, exploration, and innovation. The Artemis II crew is en route to the Moon, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is undergoing final integration before launch later this year, Dragonfly and the asteroid-hunting NEO Surveyor projects are progressing toward launch. The OMB proposal undermines those efforts by adding needless uncertainty and disruption to NASA’s workforce,” The Planetary Society said in a statement.

NASA Administrator and billionaire Jared Isaacman stressed in the last several press conferences how much President Donald Trump loves and supports NASA. Even ignoring the deep cuts to the science program, many have highlighted that, beyond Artemis, the White House seems unaware of Isaacman’s plans for the agency.

For example, in the recent Ignition Day event, Isaacman and NASA stressed the importance of the International Space Station (ISS) and an American presence in low-Earth orbit. The ISS was expected to be retired by 2030 (although Congress asked for a feasibility study to save it) and be replaced by a commercial space station. This timeline is looking less likely, so proposals have been put forward both by NASA during Ignition Day and in the Senate to extend the ISS into 2032. The budget appears not to be aware of that discussion, slashing funds for the ISS by $1.1 billion.

Critics have also highlighted racist aspects of the budget write-up. In the cuts to the Office of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Engagement, the budget specifically calls for cuts to funding for NASA initiatives with Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

On top of that, of the 40 science missions that the budget wants to cancel, the only ones mentioned were the Mars Sample Return, which was canceled months ago, and the SERVIR mission that provides satellite data to mid-and low-income countries across Africa, Asia, and the Americas for purposes of water and food security, as well as climate resilience. This mission is in partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Last year’s cuts to USAID are estimated to have caused hundreds of thousands of deaths, while others have estimated that the impact on nutrition programming alone could double child deaths globally.

The NASA budget is not the only one cut in the scientific and medical landscape, with a range of spending slashes totaling significantly less than what the Trump administration has already reportedly spent on the US/Israel-Iran war this year. That includes proposed cuts to the National Institutes of Health by $5.8 billion, and to the National Science Foundation by $4.8 billion. If the budget is approved in its entirety, the Environmental Protection Agency is set to lose $4.6 billion, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention $2.9 billion, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency – which forecasts extreme weather events, among other things – is set to lose $1.6 billion.