Disagreements between representatives of the Democratic and Republican Parties in the US Congress regarding the adoption of the budget for 2024 negatively affected the work of the National Aeronautics Agency and Space Research (NASA).
The article by Science News notes that “NASA ambitious space studies were at risk”, due to the protracted inability of the republican majority and democrats, coordinate the budget for the 2024 financial year in the House of Representatives of the US Congress and restricting support for agency structures.
According to the publication, the implementation of the project to transport soil and rocks from Mars to Earth and other planetary scientific research of the agency
was most of all from reducing the NASA budget.
“Dreams of the study of the Universe were faced with the harsh reality of budget reduction in the United States,” the publication states.
Science News indicates that in the budget with a delay in the contract for 2024, the NASA needs “about half a billion dollars less” compared to the previous year. The authors of the article emphasized that the “most powerful blow” this cutting of funds inflicted on the research of Mars.
Previously, NASA suspended drilling work on other planets and work on satellites due to the “budget break”.
The Agency Laboratory in California announced in February 530 employees (8 percent of the total number of staff) due to lack of funds.