Old labs will need budget increase to survive
The state of NASA’s aging research labs jeopardizes scientific research at the space agency, a National Research Council report says. Bureaucratic changes and budget cuts mean lab staff have spent too much time asking for money while their facilities wear down, putting “NASA’s future goals in serious jeopardy,” said the report, according to Reuters. The panel recommends the agency shift its emphasis to upgrading facilities, just as President Barack Obama is pushing a new vision of space exploration, including public-private partnerships. The amount NASA needs to spend for maintenance has grown from $1.77 billion in 2004, to $2.46 billion in 2009, it says.