Articles

The Planetary Society

The first of two new columns rounds up all the ways Society members are making a difference for space.

Casey Dreier

The White House released a long-awaited supplemental budget request for NASA today. It proposes an additional $1.6 billion for an accelerated human spaceflight effort to land on the Moon in 2024. This boosts the President's budget request for NASA to $22.6 billion in fiscal year 2020, which is approximately $1.1 billion or 5% more than the amount provided by Congress last year.

Highlights from the hearing, 'Keeping our Sights on Mars: A Review of NASA's Deep Space Plans' held on May 8th in the House of Representatives.

Casey Dreier

Thirty years ago, President George H.W. Bush announced an ambitious program to return humans to the Moon. It failed. Today the Trump Administration wants the same thing. Can a failed lunar return effort help this one succeed?

On March 27, 2019, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies held a hearing titled, “NASA’s FY 2020 Budget Request.”

Casey Dreier

Can NASA really return astronauts to the Moon by 2024?

Casey Dreier

The President's Budget Request for NASA in 2020 would start a Mars Sample Return mission and ramp up efforts to send humans to the Moon. But it would still kick off the first year of a new decade with a half-billion dollar cut to the space agency.

Casey Dreier

Society members from across the United States came to Washington, D.C. on their own dime to advocate for space science and exploration.

Casey Dreier

After months of unrelated political turmoil, multiple stop-gap spending bills, and an unprecedented government shutdown, NASA's 2019 budget was finally signed into law.

Casey Dreier

If ever there was an example of how quickly political winds can shift, look no further than the sudden end to a seemingly endless government shutdown on January 25th.

Casey Dreier

The partial government shutdown that shuttered NASA continues with no end in sight. The U.S. space program sits idle, the vast majority of its workforce sent home. Space science and exploration projects are disrupted. Paychecks are absent. And an unsettling realization has dawned on hundreds of thousands of public employees and contractors affected by the shutdown: this time is different.

Casey Dreier

A partial government shutdown has shuttered NASA's operations for at least a week. Critical programs like the International Space Station will continue. This is the third shutdown of 2018 and another pointless disruption for the hardworking men and women at the U.S. space agency.

Casey Dreier

In the brief period of public and political goodwill generated by NASA's latest success at the Red Planet, now is the time to secure a commitment for the next steps at Mars: sample return.

Casey Dreier

John Culberson, an 8-term Texas Republican and staunch supporter the search for life on Europa, lost his re-election bid last week. His support for Europa was attacked by opponents and could send a chilling political message about the consequences of supporting space science and exploration.

Casey Dreier

The 2018 midterms swept away a number of NASA advocates in Congress, though looming budgetary battles may end up having more direct impacts on space than any one elected official.

Casey Dreier

Fiscal year 2019 is here, but NASA doesn't have a new budget. Which programs could suffer the most as a consequence?

Casey Dreier

Casey Dreier observes the genesis of a new space agency in Australia, and how The Planetary Society helped make it happen.

Kate Howells

On 7 September, down the street from the NAFTA meetings in Washington D.C., the Canada Institute at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars hosted a meeting of many thought leaders from both countries to discuss a point of uncertainty in the Canada-United States relationship: collaboration in space.

Casey Dreier

Have questions about Space Force? We have answers.

Casey Dreier

Though progress is being made on Mars Sample Return, a new report from the National Academies recommends NASA have a long-term plan for robotic Mars exploration, and work to ensure communications infrastructure is maintained at the Red Planet. These recommendations largely align with those made by The Planetary Society in a report released in 2017.