The United States Congress has finally decided on the budget allocated to NASA for the fiscal year 2022. If the amount is slightly below what was requested by the space agency, there is progress by compared to last year.
A $24.04 billion budget for NASA
For this fiscal year, NASA submitted its formal budget request to Congress in May 2021. At the time, agency administrator Bill Nelson said, “ The Biden administration proves that science is back. This (Editor’s note: the budget) will help NASA address the climate crisis and advance robotic missions to pave the way for human exploration of the Moon and Mars “. This Tuesday, March 8, Congress therefore published a draft budget which should be signed next week by President Joe Biden, reports Ars-Technica.
NASA extends its contract with SpaceX to transport astronauts to the ISS
In total, NASA will receive $24.04 billion from the US government. While that sum is $760 million less than the space agency’s original request, it is $700 million above the budget provided for fiscal year 2021.
The Artemis program in sight
One of the cornerstones of the 2022 budget is the Artemis program, through which NASA plans to return humans to the Moon and build a permanent base on our satellite, and more specifically the Human Landing System (HLS). This is the ship that will land the astronauts on the lunar surface and which will be built by a private company, SpaceX in this case with its Starship rocket.
For its development, NASA will receive 1.195 billion dollars from the government. This is exactly what she had asked for, although Congress did not appreciate that only one company was chosen by the Agency instead of two. The latter justified this decision by, precisely, the lack of budget, and selected SpaceX for the low costs that the firm offers compared to its direct competitors, and in particular Blue Origin.
In order to receive the full amount, however, NASA must ” provide a publicly available plan explaining how it will ensure the security, redundancy, sustainability, and competition of the HLS program within the resources provided by this law and included in the budget request for fiscal year 2023 », and this within thirty days following the signing of the text. Congress also asks her to provide a detailed list of the resources she needs until 2026 to achieve her goals.
Still in connection with the Artemis program, Congress decided to allocate a budget of 2.6 billion dollars to the Space Launch System (SLS), a super heavy launcher in development for more than a decade, and which has accumulated many delays. That’s more than NASA asked for ($2.48 billion). The US government is particularly keen on this rocket, despite its astronomical cost, because it creates many jobs across the country. If all goes well, and that is not said as there have been many failures and postponements, the SLS should make its first flight this year.
Artist’s impression of the Space Launch System, a rocket supposed to send the next American astronauts to the Moon. Image: NASA
The after ISS is taken into consideration
The space agency also received the sum it had requested for its Commercial LEO Development program, which works after the International Space Station (ISS). The latter is funded until 2024, and Congress would like it to be funded until 2030 to retire at this time, but this project is currently in jeopardy because of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and its impact on international space cooperation.
After the ISS, NASA wants low Earth orbit to be occupied by space stations manufactured and operated by private companies, and in which the agency could rent places to send astronauts or even carry out experiments. Moreover, it offered a contract to three companies so that they develop their own station.
For this program, Congress has decided on the sum of 101.1 million dollars, which is significantly more than the 15 million and 17 million dollars granted in 2020 and then in 2021.
Artist’s impression of Blue Origin’s Orbital Reef space station, which is expected to come into operation at the end of the decade. Image: Blue Origin
The science part does not receive the expected sum
As far as science is concerned, NASA will receive the sum of 7.6 billion dollars, which is less than what was requested (7.9 billion), but more than last year. This includes a series of robotic missions to explore the solar system, the James Webb Space Telescope and new Earth observation missions. In addition, the space agency will receive all of what it requested, i.e. $653 million, for the development of its mission to bring the Mars samples collected by the Perseverance rover back to Earth.
If the future of international space cooperation is more than uncertain, NASA is working on many very large projects and, for once in some time, it obtains the budget it requires to achieve this.