28-07-2025
Nasa under attack: Mass layoffs, budget cuts hit American space dominance
As the American space agency prepares for the launch of four astronauts to the International Space Station as part of Crew-11 mission, Nasa is in the midst of an unprecedented scientists, engineers, and workers across the United States are protesting a sweeping wave of layoffs following dramatic budget cuts enacted under the Trump administration. Nearly 20% of the agency's workforce, estimated at 3,870 employees, are set to leave, dramatically shrinking Nasa from over 18,000 employees to around 14,000.
Many agency veterans say morale has plummeted. (Photo: Reuters)
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The departures come via the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), a buyout-style initiative introduced as part of a broader federal effort to create a 'leaner and more efficient' officials insist the agency remains committed to safety and exploration goals, including planned missions to the Moon and Mars, internal experts warn that the loss of institutional knowledge and talent poses grave risks to future protests broke out over the weekend, with hundreds of Nasa employees, contractors, their families, and supporters gathering outside iconic sites like the Smithsonian National Air and Space UNDER THREATRally organisers decried what they called 'preemptive compliance' with an unfinished budget, fearing the agency's storied legacy and scientific safety standards had been undermined before Congress had finalised funding agency veterans say morale has plummeted. The layoffs, implemented in two waves throughout 2025, have triggered a chain reaction of resignations and retirements, with workers expressing concerns that crucial 'brain drain' is happening too quickly for any meaningful succession planning.'We are here because Nasa is under attack,' one protest leader declared, warning that the erosion of experience and oversight could imperil future missions and even astronaut safety.
The departures come via the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP). (Photo: Reuters)
Adding to frustrations, nearly 300 Nasa scientists and engineers have co-signed the 'Voyager Declaration,' an open letter protesting the funding cuts and organisational declaration cautions that the rapid personnel losses and elimination of critical programs could bring about 'irreparable damage,' particularly to Nasa's ability to pursue climate research, advanced aeronautics, and deep space assurances from the agency's leadership that safety and innovation remain priorities, those on the front lines say the mass departures and persistent uncertainty have left Nasa 'demoralised' and at a continue to call on US Congress to act swiftly, warning that America's preeminence in space and science is at stake.- Ends
