spacetoday.net: NASA $17.7-billion budget proposal calls for 2014 includes asteroid mission work

Posted: Thu, Apr 11, 2013, 9:27 AM ET (1327 GMT)
NASA asteroid capture mission illustration (NASA)

The Obama Administration released its fiscal year 2014 budget proposal on Wednesday, requesting $17.7 billion for NASA and including funding to begin work on a mission to move an asteroid to Earth-Moon space. The budget is similar in many respects to the agency's 2013 budget request, and includes full funding for the Orion crew vehicle, SLS heavy-lift rocket, and commercial crew programs. Also in the budget is $105 million for a new asteroid initiative, including funding to develop solar electric propulsion and other technologies needed for a mission to move a small asteroid to cislunar space, as well as asteroid search and impact mitigation work. The budget cuts NASA's education program funding by about one fourth as part of a broader consolidation of various STEM education efforts across the government. The budget also asks for a lower level of funding for planetary science, approximately $1.2 billion, echoing concerns raised last year when the administration sought a similar cut.