WHY GOVERNMENT FUNDING OF NASA IS VITAL

HIST 552

Why Government Funding of NASA is Vital

November 9, 2018
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Government funds and tax payer dollars that are used to support NASA have great

impacts on the rise of the economy, vital data collection, and national security. Without such

funds many of the advancements we know today would not currently exist. The National

Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is responsible for launching the satellites that

help us to be prepared for natural occurrences and to keep an eye on threats to our nation. Not

only have we expanded our knowledge of our own terrestrial life with NASA but we now have

eyes on far larger and further things that exist beyond our reach in the depths of our galaxy. The

hubble telescope, a product of NASA grants us the extraordinary power to see tremendously

further than ever before. The Trump administration encourages NASA to keep doing what they

are doing .1 Most agencies received a much more severely cut budget for this fiscal year to help

reduce government spending. But the minimal decrease in NASA’s budget signifies their

importance to the United States economy.

Over the years, since 1953 when it was established, NASA has made numerous

contributions to the welfare of the country and to the rise of the economy. In 2012 NASA had a

$18 billion dollar budget .2 A whopping 80% of this budget was spent on program activities,

including but not limited to the International Space Station (ISS), NASA’s exploration vehicles,

the Curiosity Rover, aeronautical advances, and even over one thousand research and technology

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. ​(Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 2

investments. Of this 80%, 45% of which is invested into technology research, developing, and

manufacturing. There are five main programs under this umbrella of investment. The most well

known are the ISS, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the Space Launch System (SLS),

and the Space Technology Program (STP). An estimated eight billion dollars went to this group

of funding in 2012. This is important to know because NASA pays many smaller businesses to

handle much of the activities that go along with these endeavors. By pumping these funds into

the American economy NASA is feeding and fostoring new jobs and businesses.

The United States economy feels the positive effect of NASA all over. Thanks to NASA

there is an additional two billion dollars spent on U.S science and technology, five billion dollars

spent on U.S manufacturing, and three hundred million spent on key emerging technologies.

NASA’s investment in American industry not only pays for new sciences to be discovered, it

also pays for thousands of jobs.

NASA grows American businesses. By investing money into smaller companies with

capabilities to complete necessary activities for NASA they are giving opportunities for smaller

science based companies to grow. Often times NASA will sell patents and copyright licenses as

well as software usage agreements that allow them to share their technology, data, and

innovations with countless emerging businesses. NASA goes to businesses, universities, and

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. ​(Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 3

others for the majority of their needs. Only three billion of NASA’s eighteen billion dollar

budget is spent on NASA employees. The remaining fifteen billion dollars is spent on the

previously discussed businesses and universities .2 Not only does this play a role in boosting the

economy but it is also cost efficient in regards to how they spend their government funded

budget. This shows that they intend to maximize their potential as an agency with what they are

given to work with.

When the government chooses to fund NASA they are not only paying for the operation

of one isolated agency. They are giving opportunities to small companies, professionals, and

college students. Two Langley NASA researchers, Anthony Calomino and Mary Beth Wusk

heard of the loss of nineteen firefighters in Arizona and decided to reach out with thermal

material research that they believe could help save the lives of countless firefighters in the future

.3 These two researchers were working on materials meant for space entry that could survive

upwards of three thousand degrees fahrenheit [1,649 degrees celsius] .3 They reached out so

their technology could transfer into another purpose and be used to help save lives. With the

intentions to create the most capable fire shelters they partnered with the Forest Service’s

National Technology and Development Center in Missoula, Montana. This partnership became

known as CHIEFS [Convective Heating for Improvement for Emergency Fire Shelters]. The

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 4

adaptation of NASA’s thermal material technology to be used to create fire shelters is an

example of what is known as technology transfers. The sharing of knowledge, research, and

design is helping to save the lives of professionals who are put in danger in the line of duty. This

project is still in the works but the NASA researchers and T&D hope to have fully functioning

portable fire shelters by 2018 after a series of functionality and field tests.

Technology Transfers are responsible for much of today’s innovation. A small Boston

startup company called Neurala was inspired by the type of artificial intelligence used by the

Curiosity Rover to explore Mars so they began looking into how they might find terrestrial uses

for that same brain-like technology. NASA took notice of Neurala’s vision and was intrigued by

the direction they were taking. NASA awarded them with Small Business Technology Transfer

Contracts [STTR] with NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia .4 NASA’s

artificial intelligence technology is unique because it doesn't require a cloud or internet to

operate, instead it was designed after the human brain, allowing systems to make intelligent

decisions on their own. The small Boston company was able to raise $750,000 and then another

$250,000 was granted by a NASA program for the commercialization of the STTR technology.

Neurala was able to create multiple applications used by consumers for drones and robots. By

parting with the internet this type of technology becomes self sufficient and prevents privacy and

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 5

security issues. Neurala is still in the process of developing even more devices and applications

with NASA’s technology.

By supporting NASA the government is supporting future generations of innovative and

science minded individuals. This is because NASA works so closely with Universities, educating

and sponsoring competitions that challenge and reward innovation and forward ideas of the

students. One of these design challenges for university students was to extract water from

simulated conditions of ice under the surface of mars .5 NASA not only wanted to see the

technology of the students but also to engage the younger generations in their inspirations to

send mankind to Mars. Other major companies tend to partner with NASA to judge these

competitions. Sometimes the leaders in these prestigious companies are so impressed by the

caliber of the university students that they offer internships to students from the winning teams .6

These opportunities would never have been possible without the government funds for

NASA. The agency’s reach extends so far that it touches the lives of every American citizen.

Every taxpayer dollar spent on NASA is important. NASA isn’t just about launching space

shuttles, it’s about building a future for humanity.

Not only does NASA affect the United States it also collaborated with foreign entities

and has its own foreign policies .2 NASA has over five hundred agreements with two thirds of

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 6

countries around the globe. On an individual basis NASA involves over 1.2 million citizen

scientists whom originate from an estimated eighty different nations. The government greatly

benefits from the international partnerships that NASA generates. It allows the government

peaceful relations and collaboration with other countries.

As of today, there is a raging campfire in California that is putting the lives of thousands

of American citizens and their homes in danger. NASA and the U.S Geological Survey’s Landsat

8 spacecraft was able to get an incredible image of California’s deadly and destructive campfire

.7 Not only did it manage to capture an image of this fire, it also showed California’s Woolsey

and Hill fires. On nearly opposite ends of the state, California is burning from both ends so badly

that it can be seen from space. The technology we have in orbit around Earth impacts human life

so much. Along with GPS tracking systems satellites are responsible for accurate weather

forecasting. There's almost nothing we can't see from space now. Without the fire image the real

scale of the destruction would elude us. These fires are still burning and still growing while the

spacecraft keeps an eye on them for those reporting the dangers to the public..

The ways satellites and NASA technology collect data allows scientist and the average

citizen to to better manage information, geography, and their lives as a whole. Without the

weather forecasting capabilities of NASA technologies, the public would be unprepared for

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 7

natural disasters and storms. Floridians wouldn't know when to board up their windows or buy

extra candles for power outages. Without GPS and their smartphones no one these days would

know how to get much of anywhere or be able to find information. NASA is far too important an

agency to discount.

Space exploration is a massive part of the United States’ legacy. The United States was

the country that sent the first man to the moon in an era where very few countries participated in

what was known as the space race. However, today there is an estimated sixty nations that are

involved in space technology .8 There is increased strain to maintain a position of power in space

due to budget cuts across agencies including NASA, the Department of Defense, and other

intertwining agencies that have an impact on the United States position in space. With less funds

the spirit of taking risks is diminished to protect the budget. NASA is doing less of the ambitious

missions of the past while focusing on safer more affordable programs. With continued

reductions in budget NASA is losing its edge in the realm of space exploration. The government

cannot afford to lose their position in space. Less of the younger generations are as starstruck

with the idea of space shuttles and space travel than when those technologies were first released.

Of these younger generations even fewer are interested in pursuing a STEM degree, let alone a

career in tomorrow’s aerospace workforce. Motivating the future generations is one of NASA’s

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 8

biggest challenges if they want to continue to hold their global position as one of the leaders in

space technology. Strengthening the United States hold over space would serve to deter

international aggression and provide numerous future benefits to mankind.

NASA needs the government funds and so does the United States economy. The

scientists of tomorrow need the inspiration and the motivation. The world needs NASA’s

innovation and technology. The nation needs the jobs that NASA is fueling. The government

cannot afford to stop using taxpayer dollars to fund NASA, nor decrease the budget much

further. The agency is responsible for too many important aspects of daily life and innovation to

survive without its government budget.

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 9

References

Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security” (Oleson,

silsby, and Skelly, 2012)

Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG Idea

Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)

Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland Firefighter”

(Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)

Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test” (Damadeo,

Kristyn, 2018)

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)
 10

Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)

Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)

Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” CBS Interactive Inc.

(Harwood, William, 2017)

The Tauri Group NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. (The Tauri Group, 2013)

1. Robert Lightfoot “Trump seeks $19.1 billion for NASA in budget request” ​CBS
Interactive Inc. (​ Harwood, William, 2017)
2. The Tauri Group ​NASA Socio-Economic Impacts. ​(The Tauri Group, 2013)
3. Kathy Barnstorff and Bob Allen “NASA Technology May Help Protect Wildland
Firefighter” (Barnstorff, Kathy, 2015)
4. Rebecca Carroll “A ‘Brain’ for Cars, Tested for Mars” (Carroll, Rebecca, 2018)
5. Kristyn Damadeo “NASA puts Mars-Forward Student Technology to the Test”
(Damadeo, Kristyn, 2018)
6. Joe Atkinson and Shelley Spears “Norwich university Crowned Champion of 2018 BIG
Idea Engineering Design Challenge” (Atkinson and Spears, 2018)
7. Mike Wall “Raging California Wildfires Spotted from Space” (Wall, Mike, 2018)
8. Gary Oleson, Bob Silsby, and Darin Skelly “NASA is essential for national security”
(Oleson, silsby, and Skelly, 2012)