Keith’s note: OK so I am ‘back’. Thanks for all the kind words, support etc. Let’s get down to business. The month of September is going to be the hardest yet for NASA. Multiple budget profiles will collide with one another – in an inelastic fashion. Missions will be on hold and operate in holding pattern mode. Other missions will simply die at the hands of budgeteers. And the people of NASA – regardless of where their paycheck comes from – will still be called upon to lead humanity’s exploration of space while being stressed from multiple directions. Meanwhile, the political people inside the glass doors on the 9th floor of NASA HQ simply don’t care what happens to the agency’s workforce – or keeping them informed. As if you had not already figured that out. That said, NASA is already ‘Great In Space”. No “Again” required. Despite the political rhetoric over the years, NASA has begun humanity’s expansion into interstellar space (see image). No one else has done that. And NASA’s lead will be rather hard to eclipse. Anyway – here is my top ten take on things to be aware of in September . Warning – it is not pretty – but it is also not without hope. [More below]

Keith’s note: according to the Hill: “Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said Thursday that climate and earth science at the agency will “move aside” as it refocuses solely on space exploration.
“All the climate science and all of the other priorities that the last administration had at NASA we’re going to move aside, and all of the science that we do is going to be directed towards exploration, which is the mission of NASA.” Newsflash Sean Duffy: NASA is chartered to do climate science, you know, the stuff that happens in an “atmosphere”. e.g. National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958” Public Law #85-568,72 Stat. 426. Sec. 102.(c) (1) “The expansion of human knowledge of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;” This picture is Earth’s “atmosphere” as seen from “space”.

Keith’s note: There is a meeting next week regarding Landsat: Sustainable Land Imaging Mission Alternatives Analysis Team Industry. The meeting is looking for the cheapest way to do the least with Landsat as a result of the President’s FY 2026 Budget Request. The PBR seeks to cancel Landsat missions and descope Earth science budgets at NASA. One small problem: NASA is acting as if the PBR is the actual budget contrary to what Congress is doing. Congress has already complained about this as it was described in last month’s NASA Town Hall Meeting. But NASA is going ahead with this anyway. (More below)

Keith’s note: This letter from Earth scientists has also been published in Science magazine and is reprinted here with the permission of the authors [Science, 389, 357-358. doi:10.1126/science.adz6100]: “In May, the US administration proposed budget cuts to NASA, including a more than 50% decrease in funding for the agency’s Earth Science Division (ESD) (1), the mission of which is to gather knowledge about Earth through space-based observation and other tools (2).

Keith’s note: the following was sent out to users of the NCCS MSS – NASA Center for Climate Simulation MSS (Mass Storage System) managed out of NASA Goddard: (more below)

Keith’s note: Update on the earlier post Going Out Of Business Sale For JPL Satellites: emails are circulating within JPL and NASA that mention a number of satellites that are listed as being targeted for shut down in the President’s FY 2026 budget request. NASA HQ is apparently not waiting for an actual budget. The list of satellites of the discount rack at NASA now includes OCO-2, OCO-3, SAGE III, CLARREO-Pathfinder, GLIMR, DSCOVR, CYGNSS, Terra, Aqua, Aura, and GeoCarb. Stay tuned for more bargains!

Keith’s note: According to this AP story: “Earlier this month, the official government websites that hosted the authoritative, peer-reviewed national climate assessments went dark. Such sites tell state and local governments and the public what to expect in their backyards from a warming world and how best to adapt to it. At the time, the White House said NASA would house the reports to comply with a 1990 law that requires the reports, which the space agency said it planned to do. But on Monday, NASA announced that it aborted those plans.”

Keith’s note: Last night NASA SMD AA Nicky Fox was presented with the Collier Award for NASA’s Parker Solar Probe – an astonishing mission that has literally touched the sun. NASA Comptroller nominee Greg Autry congratulated her with a tweet adding “Go NASA Science”. This morning the @NASASpaceSci Twitter account announced that it was being shut down and swallowed into a larger effort somewhere at NASA. Yet another example of how the NASA FY 2026 budget and other Administration Executive Orders and memos have moved to gut NASA’s science budget, cancel missions, eliminate external research grants, stiff other space agencies with international agreements, and cut personnel. Weirdly, (soon to be) Administration personnel like Autry try to laud NASA science. Some political staff at NASA even try to take credit for missions started and launched by other presidents. Alas, Autry will preside over the cancellation of all these science activities and he’ll write glowing tweets about what he cut. It’s now all Flags and Footprints. Science is a buzz word used as hashtag windowdressing in social media. If Greg Autry wants to cheer on Science at NASA then he’ll need to support it too after he arrives.

Keith’s note: NASA’s Planetary Science Analysis/Assessment Groups have issued a document dated 6 May 2025, titled “AGness”. According to the authors (which has been annotated to enhance clarity, original document below), addressing members of the planetary science community: “The linked document below, The Keys of AGness, is a product of the collective Planetary Analysis and Assessment Groups (AGs), presented by their Chairs and vetted through their respective Steering/Executive Committees, and with community feedback. It captures what the community sees as the key pillars and important role of the AGs in the advancement of planetary science now and as we move into the future. The intended audience is multifold and includes NASA leadership, who are in the process of re-imagining the AG structure and support mechanism, and the broader planetary science community as a general reference and reminder of the forums, community building, support, repositories, and voice that the AGs provide.”

Keith’s note: Several sources report that the NASA GISS lease of the Armstrong Hall building in New York City can’t be broken by GSA without incurring a large financial penalty. So, if NASA leaves anyway with a DOGE claim of a cost savings NASA will still be paying ~$3 million a year until 2031 for a building they can’t/won’t use – – plus the rent for wherever the GISS folks are moved to.

Keith’s note: Here are the NASA excerpts from the FY 2026 Budget outline – “Support Space Flight. The Budget refocuses National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) funding on beating China back to the Moon and on putting the first human on Mars. By allocating over $7 billion for lunar exploration and introducing $1 billion in new investments for Mars-focused programs, the Budget ensures that America’s human space exploration efforts remain unparalleled, innovative, and efficient. To achieve these objectives, the Budget would streamline the NASA workforce, information technology services, NASA Center operations, facility maintenance, and construction and environmental compliance activities. The Budget also terminates multiple unaffordable missions and reduces lower priority research, resulting in a leaner Science program that reflects a commitment to fiscal responsibility.”

• Mars Sample Return: cancelled
• SLS and Orion: cancelled after 3 flights
• Gateway: cancelled
• Landsat Next mission: descoped
• Climate monitoring satellites: cancelled
• Space Technology: 50% cut
• ISS: reduce crew and science, splash in 2030
• Green Aviation: gone
• STEM/Education: Its woke so its gone.
• HAPPY NATIONAL SPACE DAY!

Keith’s note: according to NSF director to resign amid grant terminations, job cuts, and controversy at Science: “Although Panchanathan, known as Panch, didn’t give a reason for his sudden departure, orders from the White House to accept a 55% cut to the agency’s $9 billion budget next year and fire half its 1700-person staff may have been the final straws in a series of directives Panchanathan felt he could no longer obey. “He was trying so hard to present the agency in a positive light,” says one knowledgeable source who asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of their position. “But at the same time, Panch knew that he was alienating himself from the scientific community by being tone deaf to their growing concerns about the fate of the agency we all love.”

Keith’s Update from additional sources: During an extensive independent review of GISS (and NSSTC) ending in December 2024 it was concluded that it would cost NASA (and GSA) much more to try to terminate the current GISS lease – and that while also doing there would be massive damage to ongoing research going on. This move won’t safe DOGE or anyone else anything. Quite the contrary. Keith’s earlier note: This was just sent to all NASA Goddard and GISS employees by Makenzie Lystrup: “Dear Colleagues: As you likely know, the administration is currently examining all government leases. As a result, NASA’s lease of Columbia University’s Armstrong Hall in New York City, home to the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, will end effective May 31, 2025.”

Keith’s note: now that budget cuts and layoffs are approaching, government science agencies are starting to come up with the public-facing rationale for these draconian cuts. Mostly, it is word salad that often smells like Chatbot babbling and wonky talking points which drive home the same points again and again and again. In addition, NSF no longer seems to be interested in assuring the validity of scientific information used by decision makers and the general public. You can expect to see stuff like this coming out of NASA soon. Oh yes: The globe in the NSF logo is surrounded by people holding hands. The people icons are painted in shades of brown-gold, from light at the top to dark at the bottom. Sounds like diversity to me. Let’s see if they change this. Here is Statement of NSF priorities posted on 18 April. Excerpts – plus a response from House Science Committee Democrats : (below)

Keith’s note: Science agency funding is under heavy scrutiny by DOGE, OMB, OPM and other Administration offices – whether it is for supposed DEI sins, perceived waste, or other things that do not resonate with the White House’s plans. NSF is already having a tough time. NASA is certain to be under similar stresses very, very soon. And of course there are long-standing synergies between NSF – and NASA – and NOAA etc. in terms of interagency research collaboration.

• According to “Trump team freezes new NSF awards — and could soon axe hundreds of grants” at Nature: “All new research grants have been frozen at the US National Science Foundation (NSF) — an action apparently ordered by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an initiative by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk to cut spending and workers across the US government. DOGE is also now reviewing a list of active research grants assessed in February by the NSF for terms associated with diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), and considering more than 200 of them for termination, NSF staff members have told Nature.”
• According to “Ranking Member Lofgren Urges NSF to Ignore Inflammatory Cruz Report, Releases Democratic Staff Report in Rebuttal”: “Today, Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (CA-18) sent a letter to National Science Foundation Director Sethuraman Panchanathan urging the Director to disregard Senator Ted Cruz’s inflammatory report in any NSF grantmaking decisions. In addition to the letter, the Ranking Member also transmitted a Minority Staff Report that details how Senator Cruz’s report is deeply flawed, and his demand for grant cancellations is therefore misinformed.”
• Meanwhile NASA has already been sending form letters like this out to grantees: “TO: NASA Grant Recipient FROM: NASA Shared Service Center (NSSC), Grants Activities Branch SUBJECT: “Hold” on grants in response to the Executive Order, Executive Order 14222, “Department of Government Efficiency” Cost Efficiency Initiative On February 26, 2025, the President of the United States of America signed an Executive Order titled, “Department of Government Efficiency” Cost Efficiency Initiative.” The purpose of this letter is to notify you that the following NASA grants are placed on “HOLD” until further notice to allow NASA the opportunity to review and determine the next steps. No further activities shall be performed as of today, March XX, 2025. Drawdowns in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Program Support Center, Payment Management System shall be made only for the costs incurred as of today. NASA appreciates your patience and support. With regards, … “

Keith’s note: NASA has led space science and “Made America Great In Space” for more than half a century. Let’s not let that science leadership fade. Let’s expand it further. NASA has led the way by:

• touching the sun
• visiting every planet in our solar system
• sending humans to walk on another world
• doing the first offworld search for life
• moving an asteroid
• finding water on the Moon and Mars
• discovering oceans inside icy moons
• sailing across interstellar space
• peering back to the dawn of the universe
• developing a global brand that all nations aspire to

Keith’s note: If they can delete climate and Earth Science data at NOAA they can do the same thing to science data at NASA. According to this release from House Science Democrats: Ranking Members Condemn Trump Administration Plan to Shut Down NOAA Research Websites and Their Data: “Last night, reporting revealed that the Trump administration plans to shut down websites associated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) research division. President Trump and Commerce Secretary Lutnick plan to cancel the contracts of webservers that support these websites. If the websites are eliminated, the climate and weather data hosted on these sites would also be lost.” Update: NOAA research websites slated to go dark get a reprieve

Keith’s note: Space Science Week 2025 – March 31-April 4, 2025 “is the joint meeting of the Space Studies Board of the U.S. National Academies discipline committees in collaboration with the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board and Board on Physics and Astronomy.” The 1 April plenary webcast is open to anyone. According to the agenda Janet Petro is speaking at 9:20 am EDT.

Keith’s note: as you may recall “SERVIR is was a joint development initiative of NASA and USAID, SERVIR works worked in partnership with leading regional organizations worldwide to help developing countries use information provided by Earth-observing satellites and geospatial technologies for managing climate risks and land use.” It is gone now – so NASA issued this notice: “ROSES-24 Amendment 118: SERVIR Applied Sciences Team Not Solicited” which says: