NASA administrator says it will cost an additional $ 20 billion to $ 30 billion to send astronauts back to the moon

NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine finally revealed the estimated total cost of the space agency's plan for the return of astronauts to the moon: 20 to 30 billion dollars. This is the extra money that NASA will need in addition to the agency's average annual budget to carry out this ambitious program, Bridenstine told CNN.

"That would represent 20 to 30 billion dollars in addition to NASA's normal budget, but of course it would be spread over five years," Bridenstine said in the interview.

This is the first time that NASA members have revealed the full cost of the plan to put people back on the lunar surface – a program recently named Artemis by the agency. NASA wants to create a crew on the Moon by 2024, having been challenged by Vice President Mike Pence to speed up the mission. During this first landing, the agency plans to do the story by asking the first woman to set foot on the lunar surface.

To revive the Artemis program, the White House has asked for an additional $ 1.6 billion during the fiscal year 2020, in addition to the $ 21 billion budget requested by the president for the rest of NASA. ;next year. However, Bridenstine made it clear that this initial budget was only a "down payment" for the program. NASA officials, including Bridenstine, have repeatedly ducked questions about the total cost of the five-year program. And congressional representatives expressed frustration at not having the full price in advance.

Based on this estimate given to CNN, NASA will need an additional $ 5 to $ 6 billion each year over the next five years to make this landing possible. Bridenstine did not explain in detail how exactly this money would be spent, but NASA clearly explained the architecture it wants to build for Artemis. NASA is currently completing the development of a massive new rocket, called the Space Launch System, as well as a new crew capsule called Orion, which will both transport people close to the Moon. In addition, the agency wants to create a new space station around the Moon called Gateway, where astronauts can live for short periods and then go to the lunar surface. NASA has already awarded a contract to an aerospace company called Maxar for the construction of the first module of the bridge.

Image: NASA

And of course, NASA will need some essential equipment: a landing system that can safely transport people away from the bridge, land on the surface, and then bring people back to the surface. the station. Over the next few months, NASA plans to launch a final call to design lunar landers and then select companies to create the system over the next two years.

The success of Artemis depends on congressional approval of additional funding for the program, and it is unclear if this will happen. The White House has asked for the $ 1.6 billion initial investment for NASA Pell Grant Fund, which provides scholarships to low-income students, which has displeased many lawmakers. Meanwhile, the latest budget proposed by the House Appropriations Committee for 2020 provides a financial boost to NASA, but does not provide any additional funding for Artemis.

Without a budget increase, NASA may resort to reducing money from other programs to achieve their goal. When the White House requested additional funding for Artemis in a budget amendment, the request also included wording allowing the administrator to transfer funds from other NASA projects to fund the Moon program. NASA officials are already preparing for heavy reductions.

"I do not think we can get the full budget as new money," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's deputy administrator for human exploration, at a recent meeting of the council's advisory board. NASA. "We will have to look for efficiencies and make internal cuts to the agency, and that's where it will be difficult." Legislators like Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), Chair of the Scientific Committee of the House, is concerned about this feeling and is concerned that scientific programs are suffering.

Bridenstine says he will not "cannibalize" other NASA programs to get people to the moon. Nevertheless, getting another $ 20 billion to $ 30 billion from Congress over the next five years could be an achievement. NASA's budget received a big boost during the Apollo program in the 1960s, but it was at the height of the Cold War and the political climate has changed considerably since then.

NASA will have a better idea of ​​Congress' position when finalizing the budget for next year. But if the agency does not even get the extra $ 1.6 billion requested from Artemis for 2020, NASA's dream of summoning people to the moon over the next five years may not be realized.