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Political Advocacy - Save Our Science!
We are at a crucial turning point in planetary exploration.
After a decade of success with Cassini at Saturn, the twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity, and the take-your-breath-away excitement of the skycrane landing of Curiosity on Mars, NASA's planetary exploration program was rewarded with budget cuts that create devastating immediate and long-term consequences for NASA's ability to explore the Solar System.
There are two immediate issues happening now, both of which involve funding:
- NASA is raiding funds restored to Planetary Science last year to pay for unrelated programs.
- The White House has proposed another round of cuts to Planetary Science 2014.
Planetary Science is a division within NASA responsible for all robotic space exploration beyond the Earth and Sun. The most inspiring and scientifically important missions are impossible if these cuts go through, and merely maintaining support for current missions will be be difficult.
The Planetary Society maintains an active lobbying effort to support NASA's missions of exploration, but we need your help to make a difference.
The Save Our Science Action Center helps you learn about the issues, both immediate and long-term, connects you to your representatives in Congress and the President (if you live outside the U.S.) and lets you know the status of planetary science.
Latest Advocacy News 
Confirmed: NASA Defies the Will of Congress by Raiding Planetary Science Funding
2013/06/10 03:40 CDT | 13 comments
Despite congressional rejection of massive cuts to Planetary Science this year, NASA has found a way to implement the cuts internally and use the money for other purposes. More »
Download This One-Page Summary on the Threat to Planetary Science
2013/06/05 07:11 CDT | 5 comments
When we visit Congress, this is what we leave them with. This one page summarizes the entire threat to continued planetary exploration at NASA in the proposed 2014 budget. More »
No NASA Operating Plan Yet
2013/05/23 12:39 CDT
NASA has still not sent its operating plan to Congress. Rumors of the agency reprogramming away all of the additional funding to Planetary Science remains just rumors. More »
Planetary Society Hangout: Advocacy Update
2013/05/23 11:40 CDT
The Planetary Society just returned from a major political advocacy trip out to D.C. what did we do and what did we achieve? What's going on with the current funding situation regarding Planetary Science and NASA at large? How does the asteroid retrieval mission help or hurt planetary exploration goals? What's the larger plan and what are the consequences if cuts continue? More »
Planetary Science Echoes Through the Halls of Congress
2013/05/21 02:12 CDT | 3 comments
The Planetary Society just returned from a big trip to Washington, D.C. to advocate for continued planetary exploration. Here's what happened. More »
NASA Robs Planetary Science
2013/05/15 05:04 CDT | 5 comments
NASA's leaked operating plan suggests that the agency is raiding money restored to the planetary program this year by Congress. More »
The Planetary Society Travels to Washington, D.C. Next Week
2013/05/09 01:28 CDT | 2 comments
We're storming D.C. next week to raise awareness of continued cuts to NASA's Planetary Science Division. More »
The White House Science Fair and an Earful for Bolden
2013/05/01 11:53 CDT | 9 comments
I meet the future of science in the United States, and I speak directly to NASA Administrator Charles Bolden about my concerns for Planetary Science funding. More »
American Astronomical Society Criticizes NASA Planetary Science Budget
2013/04/30 01:38 CDT
The AAS made a strong critique of proposed cuts to NASA's Planetary Science program today. More »
Further Analysis of NASA's 2014 Budget Proposal
2013/04/29 11:19 CDT | 7 comments
Now that groups and individuals have had time to digest the proposed 2014 NASA Planetary Science budget, they are highlighting the impacts of the proposed cuts. We are also getting the first independent reactions to the proposal to bring an asteroid to lunar orbit as a target for human exploration. More »
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Planetary Society Position Statements
Learn the official stance by the Planetary Society on the latest space-related issues and proposals.
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