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NASA's director, Jim Bridenstine, testified before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on March 13. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said on Monday that the agency would need additional funds to carry out the White House's mandate to land people on the moon by 2024. But it does not matter. It did not specify how much extra money NASA would need or provide specific details on how to accomplish the mission.
Speaking at a public meeting held at NASA headquarters, Bridenstine made it clear that NASA was looking for ways to get to the lunar surface before the 2024 presidential election. was fully aware that past administrations have set themselves bold goals on the Moon or on Mars, only to withdraw them because the Congress could not fund, or a new administration enters and cancels the previous plans.
During the presidency of George W. Bush, NASA was instructed to go to the moon. Under Barack Obama, the missions were to reach an asteroid and Mars. Now under President Trump, the moon is again. Many in the space community Compare this record to the scene of the cartoon "Peanuts" when Lucy removes the ball when Charlie Brown is about to hit him.
"I hear all the time about Lucy and football," he said. "It's not Lucy and football. In the executive branch, people are very serious, we go to the moon and go quickly. "
Bridenstine's comments come several days after Vice President Pence asked NASA to return to the moon within five years, an ambitious goal that has surprised many at NASA. In a speech to the National Space Council last week, Mr. Pence said that the agency needed to have a much greater sense of urgency. He attacked Boeing and other NASA contractors who were building the Space Launch System rocket (SLS), supposed to be used in lunar missions, but years behind and billions of dollars over budget.
[NASA rocket becomes Boeing’s latest headache as Trump demands moon mission]
Pence has also launched a salvo to NASA itself, saying that if it fails to attract astronauts to the lunar surface within five years, "we must change agencies, no mission."
The questions that NASA employees posted on the agency's website before City Hall highlighted the skepticism that has prevailed since Pence announced its new goal. As part of the previous plan, NASA was planning to send people to the moon by 2028. Reassembling it four years ago was a shock.
"Please explain in detail what we are going to change agency, not mission," an employee wrote.
"Accelerating our return to the moon is an unfunded mandate," asked another. "How are we going to do it without emptying our other important missions?"
Bridenstine gave some details during his presentation on Monday. He added that the agency planned to use what is called a footbridge, a kind of space station that would be placed in orbit around the moon. But the agency has not yet awarded a contract to build it. It also does not have the landing craft needed to transport astronauts from the catwalk to the lunar surface and vice versa.
NASA is also fighting with its lunar rocket, the SLS. Frustrated by the constant delays, said Bridenstine A Senate hearing last month that he would consider using other commercial rockets for the next test flight of the Orion probe, which would eventually be used to send astronauts to the door of the Moon.
[The program to build NASA’s moon rocket could double in price to $9 billion, IG says]
But the possibility of leaving aside NASA's main rocket, whose construction generates thousands of jobs in many congressional districts, has provoked a stinging failure of Congress, and Bridenstine has since backed off stating he It was not technically possible to use commercial rockets for the mission. .
Bridenstine said Monday in front of the town hall that he was confident that the White House would claim additional funding because the return to the moon was a "top" mandate.
"We are going to need additional resources," said Bridenstine. "I do not think anyone can take this level of commitment seriously unless they have additional means."
But the $ 21-billion White House budget request for NASA for next year rises to $ 480 million less than Congress had planned in this year's spending plan.
Mr Bridenstine nevertheless expressed confidence that the agency would achieve the goal of the White House, whatever the difficulties.
"I'm not saying that there are no holes here," he said. "In reality, we act quickly and we look at all the options. There is nothing of the table. "
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