Trump strengthens NASA for its lunar landing in 2024

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In a surprise budget decision on Monday, President Donald Trump announced that Congress would be asked to approve an additional $ 1.6 billion to send American astronauts back to the moon, thus providing public support for NASA's projects. land on the moon. 2024, with the objective of a "sustained presence" on the lunar surface as early as 2028.

"That's the down payment that @NASA needs to pursue design, development and exploration," tweeted NASA's administrator, Jim Bridenstine.

Bridenstine said the $ 1.6 billion would be used to fund the development of a new human lunar landing system, a robotic exploration of the polar regions of the lunar surface and more money for the heavy rockets needed for a lunar mission.

"Under my administration, we restore @NASA and we return to the moon and then to Mars," said President Trump on Twitter.

Bridenstine announced that the mission would call "Artemis", the sister of Apollo.

Large @NASA new! The President introduced a budget amendment for fiscal year 2020 providing for an increase of $ 1.6 billion for our # Moon2024 efforts. We will.

Watch the video I sent to the work: pic.twitter.com/7kG8h4msdC

– Jim Bridenstine (@JimBridenstine) May 13, 2019

Under my administration, we restore @NASA to greatness and we return to the Moon, then to Mars. I am updating my budget to include an additional $ 1.6 billion so that we can get back to space in a big way!

– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2019

In documents released Tuesday night, it was clear that $ 1.6 billion would not be drawn from an NASA area, but simply transferred to an inhabited space flight – it would rather act as a new injection of funds, which would push the budget of NASA to more than 22 billion dollars, the highest level in pure dollars.

"This additional investment is a down payment on NASA's efforts to land humans on the moon by 2024, and is necessary to achieve this ambitious goal," NASA's budget paper said. "This is the boost that NASA needs to move forward with design, development and exploration."

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The President is clearly interested in NASA's efforts since taking office; NASA had a general plan to return to the moon and then Mars, but having a plan – and getting some money – are two very different things.

Additional money for NASA, money for the Everglades, environmental funding for the Great Lakes, Army Corps work and additional funding for the Olympics Specials were all part of the budget amendment sent by Congress to the White House. .

"These amendments are totally counterbalanced", we read in a letter from the president, without specifying what was cut to be able to pay the additional expenses requested.

We do not know how much a mission on the moon would cost. The first Apollo program had a budget of nearly $ 25 billion.

The mission in 2024 could be expected to cost much more, at a time when the federal government is bowing to an annual budget deficit of nearly $ 1 trillion.