Keith’s note: according to “What government programs should be slashed? NASA nears top of list, poll finds“ in the Miami Herald: “In the latest Marquette Law School Poll, 63% of respondents said they would be willing to reduce spending on NASA and its space program to shrink the federal budget deficit. Meanwhile, just 37% said they would not be willing to cut it. And just 5% said sending astronauts to Mars or back to the moon is a major priority, while 39% said this is important, but not a top concern. A majority, 56%, said it should not be a priority at all.” (deep sigh) NASA has touched the sun, visited every planet in our solar system, has spaceships traversing interstellar space, and has telescopes that look back toward the dawn of the universe – yet NASA Public Affairs and other communications and outreach efforts at the agency consistently fail to convey these awesome, exciting accomplishments to the public. Only NASA could make America’s unparalleled accomplishments in space exploration so boring that such a large portion of the public wants to cut space funding. Ad Astra y’all.

Keith’s note: SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative aka “StarWars”) is back – but it is now called “Golden Dome”. It is equally sad, annoying – and weirdly fascinating – to watch all of the older male space fans trying to relive the fantasies of the old SDI days of their youth – once again under-estimating the space-related infrastructure and continued, ever growing, funding that will be required to make it actually work. Meanwhile, their main guy eviscerates, guts, dismembers – pick your word – funding for America’s space agency and the other science-oriented agencies that ally with NASA to make America the leader in space science, exploration, and utilization. This is not going to end well. Every other nation will simply surge ahead of us in space while we are once again distracted and in disarray back on Earth.

Keith’s note: As the Administration seeks to gut funding of all government science agencies, they have issued another word salad executive order – one that could have been expressed in vastly simpler language. Indeed it calls for a process of conducting science in a transparent and reproducible fashion that has already been in place for nearly a century. Of course, this wordiness is a fig leaf for some specific political issues. e.g. “Actions taken by the prior Administration further politicized science, for example, by encouraging agencies to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion considerations into all aspects of science planning, execution, and communication.” And the response of this Administration is to simply politicize science even more.

Keith’s note: according to this CNBC post: “A federal judge further blocked the Trump administration from sharply cutting jobs and reorganizing the structure of many major federal agencies as part of its so-called DOGE effort under billionaire Elon Musk. The order issued late Thursday granted a preliminary injunction that pauses further reductions in force and “reorganization of the executive branch for the duration of the lawsuit.” According to this Democracy Forward press release : “The coalition of educators, school districts, and unions that challenged Secretary of Education McMahon’s massive reduction-in-force has won a preliminary injunction that will halt the administration’s unlawful effort to dismantle the Department of Education.”

Keith’s note: when I was working at NASA on the Space Station program back in the day one things we’d tell students and the general public was that the space station would be one of the brightest things in the night sky and that it will fly over their house. I have gone outside more times than I can remember just to see it fly over. Ask my neighbors. I always explain to them how to find the flyover times online. When I was in Nepal at Everest in 2009 I went to the Spot the Station website to get ISS flyover times and showed the flyover to a bunch of Sherpa guides who had no idea that this was a thing you could do or that a person who lived up there was in Nepal with me. Now, in a memo sent out on 14 May 2025, NASA is taking the ISS tracking website offline and relying only on cell phone apps. The memo sent out to Spot the Station website uses says “the ability to find sighting opportunities near you will also no longer be available on the website.” At a time when everyone struggles to explain the value and impact of space exploration, shutting off a website like this is counterproductive in the extreme. Apps are great – but why delete a trusted source that has been of global utility for decades – especially one with text messages that have great utility for people with limited Internet access? Full Memo below.

Keith’s note: according to this JPL memo “JPL to Transition to Fully Onsite Work“: “General telework employees will have until Monday, August 25, to fully return to their assigned work location, and remote telework employees – both in and outside of California – will have until Monday, October 27. Note that for those who can, we encourage returning to fully onsite work sooner than the required dates. Although rare exceptions are possible (see below), employees who do not return by their required date will be considered to have resigned.”

Keith’s note: according to Senate Executive Calendar 23 May 2025: “Ordered, That at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, June 2, 2025, notwithstanding Rule XXII, the cloture motions with respect to the following nominations ripen: Jared Isaacman, of Pennsylvania, to be Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (May 22, 2025.)” I am sure that Jared Isaacman will enjoy being ripe.

Keith’s note: I just got this from USRA/LPI: “Dear Colleagues, We have heard from many of you and understand that there is significant concern among the planetary science community regarding the removal of DEI content from USRA/LPI websites. Please know that we did not make that decision lightly. We were doing our best to comply with our understanding of the Administration’s directives (specifically, Executive Order 14173) and the deadline it set for compliance.”

Keith’s note: NASA’s Planetary Science Analysis/Assessment Groups have issued a document dated 6 May 2025, titled “AGness”. According to the authors (which has been annotated to enhance clarity, original document below), addressing members of the planetary science community: “The linked document below, The Keys of AGness, is a product of the collective Planetary Analysis and Assessment Groups (AGs), presented by their Chairs and vetted through their respective Steering/Executive Committees, and with community feedback. It captures what the community sees as the key pillars and important role of the AGs in the advancement of planetary science now and as we move into the future. The intended audience is multifold and includes NASA leadership, who are in the process of re-imagining the AG structure and support mechanism, and the broader planetary science community as a general reference and reminder of the forums, community building, support, repositories, and voice that the AGs provide.”

Keith’s note: According to “Slope Streaks on Mars – Not A Sign Of Water After All?” from Brown University: “A new study led by the University of Bern and Brown University in the U.S. casts doubt on one of the most tantalizing clues that water might be flowing on present-day Mars. Researchers analyzed a global database of 500,000 enigmatic streaks that occur on steep Martian slopes, concluding that they’re most likely caused by dry processes rather than liquid flow.” This could have important impacts on Mars exploration – by droids as well as humans. Remember that whole ‘water may be flowing on the surface of Mars’ thing back in 2000? (NASAWatch broke the story). People went totally crazy. Now there’s a suggestion that things are possibly different than we thought. Will NASA’s Astrobiology program mention it? Most likely not.

Keith’s note: the following open letter has been issued regarding budget cuts at NASA, signed by representatives of all of the agency’s advisory groups. “To members of the planetary science community: Given the considerable uncertainty about the future NASA Science budget, the Chairs of the Analysis/Assessment groups (AGs) linked to the Planetary Science Division (PSD) want to reiterate for our communities the incredibly positive impact of science at NASA and crucial role it plays in our society, including:

Keith’s 14 May note: The “skinny” FY 2026 White House budget proposal tells NASA to “reduce the space station’s crew size and onboard research”. In advance of an actual budget, NASA is already preparing to implement deep cuts. Soon. (16 May Update from NASA PAO below)