Lunar Missions, Commercial Partnership Triumph in NASA Budget

Returning American astronauts to the moon is one of the top priorities of the president’s fiscal 2021 budget request for NASA.

The administration is seeking $25.2 billion for the agency, $2.7 billion or 11.9% more than the fiscal 2020 level, according to the request.

Getty Images

The proposal comes after President Trump’s State of the Union address which called on Congress to fully fund NASA’s Moon-by-2024 program as a “launching pad to ensure that America is the first nation to plant its flag on Mars.”

Of the $12.4 billion allocated for the “Moon-to-Mars” mission, $3.4 billion would be directed to the ...