Trump administration proposes drastic cut to NASA's budget
The Donald Trump administration is seeking savings, and one of their proposed sources is a 25 percent reduction in NASA's budget. These financial cuts will inevitably affect the space agency's programs, potentially leading to the cessation of the development of the SLS rocket, the Orion spacecraft, and the Lunar Gateway base.
NASA's budget, currently about $25 (CAD 34) billion, is expected to be cut to $19 (CAD 26) billion next year, according to documents containing recommendations for next year's United States budget, published by the Office of Management and Budget.
The 25 percent savings are intended to impact not only the agency's current operations but also its research projects and long-term programs. Although the U.S. is formally not withdrawing from the prestigious race for a manned moon landing, Donald Trump wants to halt work on solutions that were anticipated to facilitate this in the near future.
Instead of the agency's programs, which are to be gradually phased out, commercial solutions are preferred, providing—according to the authors of the recommendations—a better cost-to-effectiveness ratio.
The end of the great rocket
The SLS rocket, among others, will fall victim to the cuts, having been deemed too expensive and—due to an exceeded budget—unfeasible. The presidential recommendation notes:
The SLS, or Space Launch System, is a heavy launch vehicle that—according to previous plans—was supposed to take humans to the Moon in the not-too-distant future. The powerful rocket, in its currently tested version (first launch in 2022) Block 1, is 98 metres tall and can carry up to 70,000 kilograms of payload to low Earth orbit (LEO).
Its developmental variant, Block 2, was supposed to be 11 metres longer and capable of carrying up to 130,000 kilograms of payload to LEO. SLS rockets were intended to send Orion spacecraft into space, which—in a crewed version—were developed for lunar and Mars exploration.
Cancellation of the SLS, Orion, and Gateway programs
These plans—if the presidential recommendations are maintained—are no longer valid. Both the SLS program, which has cost about $35 (CAD 48) billion so far, and the development of the Orion spacecraft, which has cost about $26 (CAD 36) billion, are to be canceled.
The program for building the Gateway base, which was supposed to operate in lunar orbit from 2027, is also to be ended. Its first and most crucial module, HALO, was completed in early April 2025.
