President Donald Trump’s fiscal 2026 budget request, if approved by Congress, would kill many of NASA’s plans for robotic exploration of the solar system. Gone, too, would be multiple space-based missions to study Earth, the sun and the rest of the universe.

Technology Technology   The Big Story Space industry reels over pulled NASA nomination The aerospace community was caught off guard this week by President

The space agency has published its budget request to Congress which would see funding for science projects cut by nearly a half.

The worried reaction within space and national security agencies highlights the risks of government’s exclusive dependence on SpaceX for crucial tasks, including classified missions.

In the heat of the moment, Elon Musk threatened to decommission SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and then he took it back. In doing so, however, the rocket billionaire dragged NASA into his messy breakup with Donald Trump, with the agency’s access to orbit now at stake.