House Panel Rebukes NASA’s 2027 Budget as Isaacman Defends Deep Science Cuts

Overview

• At a House appropriations hearing, Chair Hal Rogers called the request disappointing, noting it drops NASA’s budget 23% to $18.8 billion and cuts the Science Mission Directorate 46% to $3.9 billion.
• Administrator Jared Isaacman said missions missing from the documents are not canceled and argued NASA can cover some early work with existing satellites and assets, though members voiced skepticism.
• Lawmakers pressed for NASA’s long-overdue 2026 operating plan that details how current funds will be spent, and Isaacman said the plan should arrive next week.
• On Europe’s ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover, Isaacman said launch costs will come from the 2026 budget, yet the 2027 request shows no money and he did not identify funding for the needed heaters and retrorockets, raising concern for a key partner mission.
• Isaacman said SpaceX and Blue Origin expect a late‑2027 Earth‑orbit docking test of their lunar landers, a timeline that points to a slower Artemis sequence built around rendezvous trials before any surface attempt.