Welcome to this edition of The Intelligence Brief… This week, NASA’s longest-running Mars orbiter, Mars Odyssey, along with several other science missions, faces termination under President Trump’s proposed 2026 budget, which experts say could threaten the U.S.’s longstanding leadership in space. In our analysis, we’ll be looking at 1) how the proposed budget would slash NASA’s science division by nearly 50%, 2) the dramatic funding cuts several robotic NASA missions and major science centers like JPL and Goddard, 3) how the proposed rollback has sparked widespread backlash from scientists and former NASA officials, and 4) why the U.S. risks eroding decades of progress if the proposed budget goes into effect.
Quote of the Week
“You’re losing the managerial and core technical expertise of the agency. What’s the strategy and what do we hope to achieve here?”
– Casey Dreier, chief of space policy, The Planetary Society
RECENT NEWS from The Debrief
Budget Proposal Slashes NASA Science Missions, Jeopardizing Mars Odyssey
This week, new concerns about the future of the American space program were stoked after it was revealed that NASA’s Mars Odyssey, the longest-operating spacecraft orbiting a distant planet, could soon be forced into an early retirement.
The intrepid spacecraft’s vital signs aren’t the problem: Unfortunately, the issue threatening to ground NASA’s operations with Odyssey is one originating from here on Earth, with recently proposed federal budget cuts casting a dire forecast for science missions across the agency.
President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposal would slash NASA’s science division by nearly 50%, meaning that missions like Mars Odyssey and several others could be in jeopardy. Despite the successful collection of valuable science data that such missions offer, the administration has argued that the space agency’s $7.33 billion science budget is unsustainable.
Now, scientists, space policy experts, and former NASA officials are issuing dire warnings about the potential long-term effects of the steep cuts and how U.S. leadership in the final frontier could be at stake.
Odyssey in the Crosshairs
With more than 100,000 orbits around the Red Planet since its arrival in October 2001, Mars Odyssey continues to dispatch critical data to its mission team on Earth, while serving as an important communications relay for the robotic rovers NASA currently has exploring locations like Jezero Crater on the Martian surface.
Despite this, the aging spacecraft now faces an early retirement as the newly proposed budget looms, according to a report in The Washington Post on Tuesday. The Trump administration aims to cut NASA’s science budget back to just $3.9 billion, stating that NASA already has “too many science missions” and must become “leaner” and “more focused” in alignment with “the Administration’s commitment to fiscal responsibility.”
In response to the proposed budget, NASA officials have already been working to restructure operations in advance of the expected reductions. Efforts to scale back its operations this year have included offers of buyouts and early retirement packages, with nearly 900 employees having left earlier this year.
On Wednesday, Politico reported that an additional 2,145 senior-ranking NASA employees are likely to leave, a workforce reduction that will likely carry decades of combined experience, signaling further potential setbacks for the American space agency.
Uncertainty Mounts
NASA officials and others in the science community have not gone along quietly amid the looming budget cuts. On June 30, dozens of NASA employees and contractors protested outside the agency’s headquarters with signs reading “Save NASA.”
On that same date, seven former NASA associate administrators for the science mission directorate, constituting every living person who has held that role, sent a letter to congressional appropriators condemning the proposed cuts and urging “Congress to reject the proposed cuts to NASA’s budget.” In their letter, the former officials argued that U.S. space science does more than merely driving innovation: it plays a significant role in America’s competitive edge against rivals like China.
“The economics of these proposed cuts ignore a fundamental truth: investments in NASA science have been and are a powerful driver of the U.S. economy and technological leadership,” the former associate administrators wrote.
Winners and Losers in the Trump Space Budget
Mars Odyssey isn’t the only veteran spacecraft currently in the crosshairs. Another Mars mission, the MAVEN orbiter, and Juno, which explores Jupiter, are also slated for termination. Additionally, major NASA centers, such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California, would see their $2.2 billion budget slashed by more than half, and the Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland could lose close to half its workforce.
While the budget also introduces significant funding cuts for robotic missions and STEM education, one area it prioritizes is human spaceflight, particularly the Artemis program, which aims to land astronauts on the Moon within two years. This funding increase acknowledges the necessity for U.S. space initiatives in competition with China’s own lunar ambitions; however, technical challenges and delays—especially with SpaceX’s Starship, the planned lunar lander—make that timeline unlikely.
According to the Planetary Society, NASA’s forthcoming science budget would be its smallest since 1984 if all the proposed cuts are implemented. However, some estimates suggest it may be the smallest the agency has seen since the 1960s.
Compounding the uncertainty NASA faces, it also currently still has no confirmed administrator, following the recent withdrawal of commercial astronaut Jared Isaacman’s nomination by President Trump.
Despite the hurdles NASA faces, in their recent letter, the agency’s seven former associate administrators emphasized that its ambitious science efforts not only help the U.S. maintain its edge but are a fundamental example of the very qualities that have long made America great.
“The science that NASA produces results in a positive view of America at home and around the world,” the letter’s authors wrote.
“They are a visible example of what makes America great.”
That concludes this week’s installment of The Intelligence Brief. You can read past editions of our newsletter at our website, or if you found this installment online, don’t forget to subscribe and get future email editions from us here. Also, if you have a tip or other information you’d like to send along directly to me, you can email me at micah [@] thedebrief [dot] org, or reach me on X: @MicahHanks.
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