NASA Under the Axe

Big Picture Science

Science, Technology

4.6 • 986 Ratings

🗓️ 12 May 2025

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The White House has proposed unprecedented cuts to NASA’s budget - the largest in the agency’s history. If approved, this withdrawal of funding would force the cancellation of many major programs, including the long anticipated Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope as well as others involved in the search for life in the universe. It would also impact the agency’s ability to do fundamental research. We look at what the loss of NASA programs could mean for the future of space science and exploration. Plus, an intriguing discovery by the James Webb Space Telescope underscores the progress we’ve made - and could lose - when it comes to searching for potential biosignatures in the universe. Guests: Leonard David – Space journalist and author Nadia Drake – Freelance science journalist Carl Zimmer – New York Times science columnist Featuring music by Dewey Dellay and Jun Miyake You can get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support! Big Picture Science is part of the Airwave Media podcast network. Please contact [email protected] to inquire about advertising on Big Picture Science. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.
0:05.6	Race the rudder.
0:07.2	Raise the sails.
0:08.3	Raise the sails.
0:09.7	Captain, an unidentified ship approaching.
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0:12.3	Roger that.
0:13.3	Wait.
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1:02.5	slash UK slash AI for people. One of the most significant science discoveries of all time would be that of alien life,
1:19.3	and recently there's been an exciting discovery bearing on that. A team of astronomers detected
1:24.9	a possible biosignature in the atmosphere of a planet 120 light years away.
1:30.3	But despite the excitement, there's an uneasy undercurrent about NASA.
1:35.3	The discovery was made with a NASA telescope at a time when the space agency's budget could suffer historic cuts,
1:43.3	forcing the cancellation of several major
1:45.6	programs involved in the search for extraterrestrial life. Well, what would the elimination of
	...

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