What happens in Washington decidedly does not stay in Washington, with practically every action taken by the richest and most powerful country in the world having a near-immediate global reaction—on tariffs,

President Donald Trump’s fiscal 2026 budget request, if approved by Congress, would kill many of NASA’s plans for robotic exploration of the solar system. Gone, too, would be multiple space-based missions to study Earth, the sun and the rest of the universe.

The space agency has published its budget request to Congress which would see funding for science projects cut by nearly a half.