February 2, 2010

expert reaction to Obama’s announcement on NASA’s Constellation programme

President Obama has set out the future of the US space programme, including on whether future missions to the moon and beyond are likely to take place.

Prof Ken Pounds, Professor of Space Physics at the University of Leicester, said:

“This has been reported as ending America’s plans to return to the Moon. In fact the new policy merely follows one of the recommendations of the Augustine Panel set up by Obama to advise on the way forward, by essentially challenging the private sector to develop a cheaper way of taking the first step into Space, to near Earth orbit, while allowing NASA to concentrate on developing more advanced technologies including new propulsion systems that will greatly shorten the flight time to Mars. While the new approach will add uncertainty and delay to the US Space Exploration programme, it might well be that, if it survives a conservative Congress, Obama’s decision will eventually be seen as a brave and positive step in making Space more rather than less accessible. The $6 billion added to NASA’s budget when the US finances are under great strain hardly seems the action of a President who has lost faith in the importance of maintaining US leadership in Space Exploration.”