NASA budget cuts threaten key space missions and ISS future
The US budget proposal for 2026 includes a significant reduction in NASA's funding, which may affect the execution of key space projects.
President Donald Trump's administration presented the US budget proposal for the fiscal year 2026, which includes significant cuts to NASA's funding. The reduction in the space agency's budget could impact the execution of many ambitious projects, such as the Gateway Space Station or the Mars Sample Return mission.
The budget proposal, announced by the White House on 2 May, plans to decrease NASA's budget from $24.8 billion (€21.9) in 2025 to $18.8 (€16) billion in 2026. This accounts for a reduction of $6 (£4.5) billion, constituting a 24.3% decrease.
The only division to receive increased funding is manned space exploration, with a budget increase of approximately $647 (€571) million.
Increasing funds for manned space exploration aims to accelerate a manned landing on the Moon before China does. However, this may negatively impact other projects, such as the Gateway orbital station, whose future is uncertain.
This project could be closed or continued only by international partners without US involvement.
Consequences for the International Space Station
The closure of the International Space Station (ISS) is also planned by 2030. The 2026 budget reduces funds for its operation by about half million dollars (€441 million), which will affect the crew sizes and the number of scientific experiments.
Among the threatened projects is the Mars Sample Return, a mission aimed at returning samples of Martian soil. The cuts will also affect scientific research divisions of space and Earth studies, including climate monitoring. Some projects from the "space technologies" division are to be transferred to the private sector.
