US Senate cuts funding for Mars Sample Return mission from $949m to $300m - NASA risks failing to deliver Martian soil samples to Earth

The US Senate has jeopardised the delivery of Martian soil samples to Earth. This is due to the reduction of funding for the Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission.

Here's What We Know

Senators do not like the technical problems that have arisen during the implementation of the mission. NASA received $1.7bn to conduct MSR, but will probably not be able to complete it as planned. This could affect the space agency's other projects.

NASA requested $949 million for 2024 to continue the MSR mission. However, the U.S. Senate has only approved $300 million, more than triple the amount requested. Moreover, the funding may be reduced to zero if the US Congress does not receive guarantees to keep the mission budget within 5.7 billion. Otherwise, the funds will be redirected to the lunar programme Artemis.

Concerns about the cost of the MSR mission did not arise from nothing. Recently NASA considered a scenario in which the delivery of samples of Martian soil could cost the U.S. budget in $9 billion.

Threats from the U.S. Congress do not mean that the project will necessarily be closed. For example, 12 years ago congressmen threatened the James Webb space telescope development programme. As we know, the $10-billion observatory was successfully launched, is happy with the results and recently celebrated its first anniversary.

An important influence on the decision of Congress will be the report of the Institutional Review Board, which consists of independent scientists. It was created to evaluate MSR and look for options to successfully complete the mission. The report will be ready by the end of this quarter.

Source: ArsTechnica