NASA's SLS rocket, Orion and science on chopping block under White House budget proposal

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21-05-2025

The days of NASA's Space Launch System moon rocket and Orion space capsule may be limited, as a White House budget proposal for the space agency aims to phase out the overbudget SLS after just two more missions.
And it's not just Artemis. NASA's budget as a whole would see agency-wide cuts that go beyond human exploration with the total budget dropping $6 billion from $24.8 billion to $18.8 billion — or nearly 25 percent. NASA's science budget takes a particularly significant hit.
"The White House has proposed the largest single-year cut to NASA in American history," The Planetary Society said in a statement, noting that the proposal comes as President Trump's proposed pick to lead NASA, businessman space traveler Jared Isaacman, still is not in the job.
"It would recklessly slash NASA's science budget by 47%, forcing widespread terminations of functional missions worth billions of dollars."
On Friday, May 2, the 46-page Discretionary Budget Request for fiscal year 2026 was made public. Among the proposed cuts drawing attention: NASA's SLS rocket and the Gateway space station — which was planned to orbit the moon starting during Artemis IV through an international partnership.
"The Budget funds a program to replace SLS and Orion flights to the Moon with more cost effective commercial systems that would support more ambitious subsequent lunar missions," the document reads.
SLS is stated to cost $4 billion per launch and run about 140% over budget. The giant rocket's cost overruns and delays have been the subject of continued concern, but it was seen as a centerpiece in the effort to return Americans to the moon ahead of the Chinese.
The budget didn't outline what would replace SLS but many have pointed to SpaceX's Starship, although that vehicle still has not been able to successfully complete an orbital mission.
The budget says the cuts come so effort can be refocused on beating China and "putting the first human on Mars." To do that, the budget allocates more than $7 billion for lunar exploration and another $1 billion for Mars-focused programs. The budget also includes an increase of $647 million for Human Space Exploration. By eventually eliminating the SLS rocket and Orion, officials suggest an annual savings of $879 million.
To date, NASA's SLS has launched once on an uncrewed mission back in late 2022. During the flight, the Orion spacecraft was found to have heat shield issues upon reentry forcing some adjustments to its planned trajectory.
The SLS rocket for the Artemis II mission, which is set to fly around the moon no earlier than spring 2026, is currently being stacked inside Kennedy Space Center's massive Vehicle Assembly Building.
Artemis III is planned to launch four astronauts in the Orion spacecraft atop NASA's SLS no earlier than mid-2027. The crew will than meet with a SpaceX Starship in lunar orbit, and two astronauts will transfer over and land on the lunar surface for the first time in more than 50 years.
Messages seeking comment with U.S. Rep. Mike Haridopolos' office were not immediately returned Friday.
Landing Americans on Mars has been a large talking point of President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO turned Department of Government Efficiency leader, Elon Musk.
In a press release, NASA officials said the proposed budget 'accelerates human space exploration of the Moon and Mars with a fiscally responsible portfolio of missions.'
'This proposal includes investments to simultaneously pursue exploration of the Moon and Mars while still prioritizing critical science and technology research,' Acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro said in the release.
Also in the proposal is a scale-back of International Space Station operations as the aging station is planned to cease operations by 2030, and NASA moves onto private space stations such as Axiom's planned space station.
Proposed cuts go beyond human exploration. Space Science will see a cut of $2.2 billion while Earth Science is set to see a $1.1 billion cut. Areas mentioned in particular were things deemed climate-related.
"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," a statement on the NASA website reads.
Space Science cuts would "terminate: the delayed and overbudget Mars sample return project, the budget said. Instead, human missions to Mars could achieve that sample return by the previously estimated date in the 2030s, the budget projects.
On April 30, a coalition of 10 space advocacy groups ranging from the American Astronomical Society to The Mars Society sent a joint letter to Congress expressing 'profound alarm' at the potential of deep cuts in NASA science.
'The impact extends far beyond mission hardware. These cuts would eviscerate space science research and analysis programs, crippling university departments, research institutions, and NASA centers,' the letter said.
'It would decimate the nation's STEM talent pipeline, eliminating vital training opportunities for the next generation of scientists and engineers and likely lead to widespread layoffs within this highly skilled workforce, both in the government and industry. If enacted, this budget will have real downstream impacts on America's ability to field next generation technology, impacting U.S. national security and economic development,' the letter said.
Among the areas they cited for concern: planetary defense, which is finding and tracking asteroids that could pose a threat to Earth, and heliophysics which helps protect satellites and communications from solar storms and other space weather.
On May 2, The Planetary Society warned: Slashing NASA's budget by this much, this quickly, without the input of a confirmed NASA Administrator or in response to a considered policy goal, won't make the agency more efficient — it will cause chaos, waste the taxpayers' investment, and undermine American leadership in space."
NASA has already seen some cuts. In early March, NASA announced it was closing its Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy; the Office of the Chief Scientist; and a DEI-themed branch, impacting 23 jobs.
Brooke Edwards is a Space Reporter for Florida Today. Contact her at [e-mail] or on X: @brookeofstars.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Proposed NASA budget sees early end to SLS moon rocket, big science cuts