Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama throws support behind increased NASA funding. Image: BohPhoto/Flickr.
As the presidential footrace continuies to gather pace and the candidates trade blows on who can best woo the American public with grandiose promises, Democratic frontrunner Barack Obama has this week thrown his support behind some $2 billion USD in extra funding for NASA and a new manned mission to the moon.
Stepping forward yesterday to endorse a congressional plan to lavish NASA with a huge $2 billion USD funding boost, Obama’s policy paper outlined that the Democratic nominee from Illinois is keen to “minimize the gap” between the upcoming decommission of the Space Shuttle and the resumption of manned space missions.
Obama is also keen to extend the current Space Shuttle launch schedule to include one more mission. At present, NASA’s shuttle is due to be taken off line following a 15-day mission that will conclude in the middle of June 2010.
The endorsement follows on from last week’s NASA announcement that revealed a 2014 launch delay to the unveiling of the Orion spacecraft and its Ares rocket, which will combine to serve as the official replacement for NASA’s long-serving orbital shuttle.
NASA attributed the one-year delay to funding restrictions and also problems related to ongoing technical issues with Orion's new systems.
The Orion craft is not expected to carry a manned crew of astronauts to the International Space Station before 2016.
Obama’s latest campaign release is also meant to address the potential unemployment impact that could be felt by NASA facilities in Texas and Florida. The space administration faces losing thousands of employees across a five-year stopgap before it begins the planned Constellation project to send astronauts back to the moon and also onward to Mars.
While Obama and Republican candidate John McCain may well differ on a whole host of policy points, both men agree when it comes to the evolution of America’s space program. Arizona Sen. John McCain has also endorsed extra funding for NASA while also supporting the move to reduce the five-year gap.
While both Obama and McCain have leant their endorsements to adding $2 billion USD in NASA funding, President Bush stands against the planned monetary injection, labelling it as fiscally irresponsible, according to a Houston Chronicle report.
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