New plan for space exploration deserves a shot at liftoff

It is an old saying in Washington: "The president proposes, but Congress disposes."

Congress may well dispose of the president's plan for NASA, but if all they do is try to protect the special interests of their own congressional districts, then we will again have a human spaceflight program with no rationale except to protect vested interests.

Twenty-seven members of Congress (two-thirds of them from Alabama and Texas) have written to NASA Administrator Charles Bolden saying: "The termination of the Constellation programs is a proposal by the president, but it is Congress who will accept or reject that proposal. In the meantime, FY10 funds for the Constellation programs are to be spent as if the program will continue."

If Congress forces that spending, it guarantees that at least an additional $2 billion of NASA funds will be wasted — $2 billion!

However the budget proposal is acted on in Congress, it is clear that the nation is not going to go ahead with the Constellation project, which had a primary goal of returning humans to the moon by 2020 — neither its Ares I rocket, which was to replace the space shuttle in delivering humans into Earth orbit, nor its moon mission. The 2004 Vision for Space Exploration may have been farsighted, but its implementation plan for Constellation was shortsighted: an inadequate goal and inadequate funds to achieve it.

Special interests are now focused on saving contracts and funding in particular congressional districts. Two examples are GOP Rep. Ron Paul of Texas and Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama. They oppose government spending, except when it takes care of the folks at home. Both have called for decreases in the federal budget while seeking continuation of spending on Constellation, even though it is no longer possible to meet its goals.

Outside of congressional special interests, there is much more support for the new Obama administration plan. Former astronauts, including Buzz Aldrin and Sally Ride, and other space and science experts have voiced their approval of the administration's proposed NASA budget. Political leaders as diverse as Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico and former House Majority Leader Newt Gingrich have also expressed their support.

The Planetary Society and 11 other nonprofit space interest groups have issued a position statement (as part of the Space Exploration Alliance) applauding "the administration's desire to begin human exploration of the solar system as well as for embracing these other valuable initiatives" in its proposed budget, while at the same time seeking timetable and technical details from NASA on the path for human spaceflight beyond low Earth orbit.