by According to an early budget proposal, which was leaked at the beginning of this year, the Trump administration plans to reduce NASA’s science budget in almost half, which critics describe as a “extinction event” for research at the space agency.
As Scientific American Reports that the budget would achieve until the approval of the congress would achieve a minute painful and unnecessary result: the effective cancellation of NASA’s follow-up examination for her groundbreaking James WebB world dream telescope, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.
For years, scientists have been working intensively with the observatory and the final integration and tests before moving it to Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the start of space.
However, the latest budget proposal, if it is approved by the congress, could be a death blow to the already constructed space telescope.
“That’s crazy” Sciam. “You built it and won’t take the last step to end it?”
“This is such a waste of taxpayers’ money,” he added.
In the past, the telescope has had non -partisan support in the past, which indicates that it is exposed to considerable oppositions in Washington, DC.
In fact, Trump has now tried to terminate the Roman telescope on four different occasions – but the congress successfully fought back every time.
“We are extremely alarmed by reports of a temporary budget of the White House, which suggests to reduce NASA science financing by almost half and end dozens of programs that are already in good action, such as the Mars sample return mission and the Roman space telescope,” said the representative Judy Chu (D-Ca) and Don Bacon (R-ne), co-chair pf-statements.
“If these proposed cuts decrease our spatial economy and workforce, endanger our national security and defense skills and ultimately give the United States in space, science and technological innovation to our opponents,” they wrote.
If the Roman space telescope is launched, scientists could offer an unprecedented, extremely detailed appearance in large -scale cosmological structures in the infrared light.
Named after Nancy Grace Roman, the late American astronomer, which made important contributions to star classification and served as the first female manager of NASA. The observatory was able to shed light on some of the greatest scientific mysteries, the astronomers today.
“Roman has the sensitivity that we have to understand to understand what is going on with the 70 percent of the universe that we do not understand what dark energy is” Sciam.
In addition to the Roman telescope, Trump’s proposed budget cuts would also kill other important projects for planetary science and space exploration, including a mission for Venus, and the already hard-pressed mission of the NASA-Mars sample return.
However, the financing of existing telescopes, including JWST and Hubble of NASA, is taken into account in the budget proposal.
Experts were horrified by the proposal to almost fatal the science directorate of the space agency.
“It covers a program that is clearly the leading program of the world – in a historical way,” a former government official told Sciam. “You take this program and shoot it through your head.”
In particular, the canceling of the Roman space telescope could be devastating news for the scientific community, if not for the world.
“Why do we plan great things when we can decide from a mood that we ‘close’?” A senior space scientist told Sciam. “These things take a generation to build and enable several generations of scientists. They should not be thrown away easily.”
More about the novel: Trump plans brutal cuts at NASA: “Event on extinction in NASA science”.
