Dawn's Last Chance?

LPSC: The natives are restless, Nature News Blog

"Gerhard Neukum ... railed against the decision to defer the Dawn mission to Ceres and Vesta, the two largest asteroids, saying NASA had reneged on international agreements without any consultation of its European partners. "This is not the way NASA should treat these things if you want continued international cooperation," he said. "Things are really degrading in terms of cooperation, and I'm not the only one who feels that way." Huge applause from the room."

NASA reviews canceled asteroid mission, AP

"NASA's unusual step to review Dawn's termination came after the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, which manages the mission, presented new evidence, the space agency said in a statement. It's the first time in recent memory that a NASA center has challenged a headquarters decision on a canceled mission, said NASA spokeswoman Erica Hupp."

Previous NASA Watch posts:

- A Stay of Execution for Dawn?
- Congress Hears About Dawn Mission Cancellation
- Dawn Mission Cancelled