spacetoday.net: Bush proposes $16.5 billion for NASA in 2006

Updated: Mon, Feb 7, 2005, 1:44 PM ET (1844 GMT)
Originally Posted: Mon, Feb 7, 2005, 1:43 PM ET (1843 GMT)
NASA

The Bush Administration released their fiscal year 2006 budget proposal on Monday, requesting nearly $16.5 billion for NASA while providing no funding for a Hubble repair mission or a nuclear-powered Jupiter probe. The proposed budget of $16.45 billion for NASA reflects a 2.4 percent increase over 2005, less than expected by many but still more than many other government agencies, which saw their budgets cut. As expected, the budget includes no funding for either a shuttle or robotic mission to Hubble; NASA officials said that they felt there wasn't enough time to get a robotic mission ready before the orbiting telescope is expected to fail. The budget also included no funding for the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO), a large nuclear-powered spacecraft scheduled for launch in 2015 to study Jupiter's large icy moons. NASA will, however, continue funding Project Prometheus, an effort to develop nuclear power and propulsion systems; JIMO had been a centerpiece mission for the project. The budget also includes less money for the Crew Exploration Vehicle program than originally projected, but the budget will still be sufficient to keep the effort on schedule. NASA will also begin studying this year whether the agency should close one of its field centers.