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Unmanned Spaceflight.com _ Exploration Strategy _ 2021 Budget

Posted by: JRehling Feb 11 2020, 05:23 PM

A new year's budget moves us one step closer to future plans. Who knows how much of this is tentative, to be undone in future planning, but some of the updates are:

• WFIRST cancelled.
• Mars Sample Return moves forward with a fetch rover launch in 2027.
• Europa Clipper moves from an SLS launch vehicle to a commercial Heavy Falcon.

The Discovery 15 and 16 semifinalists have still not been selected, despite an initial target of January for that announcement.

Posted by: atomoid Feb 13 2020, 12:09 AM

WFIRST apparently cannibalized to bolster JWST...
PACE and CLARREO nixed as well.. fortunately its just a https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/fy2021_summary_budget_brief.pdf
for 2027 a 'Mars Ice Mapper' to characterize global distribution of H2O ice within 3-16 meter depth.

Posted by: JRehling Feb 13 2020, 02:44 AM

The down-select announcement for the Discovery 15 and 16 missions will occur at 4pm ET on February 13.

Posted by: vjkane Feb 13 2020, 06:51 PM

QUOTE (JRehling @ Feb 12 2020, 06:44 PM)

The down-select announcement for the Discovery 15 and 16 missions will occur at 4pm ET on February 13.

Here's the list of proposals and possible proposals I've collected:

Concepts with ? have been presented in last year or two, appear to be the right scope for a Discovery mission, but weren't presented as Discovery missions

Asteroids - MANTIS

Centaurs - Centarus, Chiron, SW 1
Centaurs - Chimera SW 1 orbiter

Jupiter, Io - Io Volcano Explorer
Jupiter, Callisto - MAGIC orbiter

Luna - Compass Lunar Rover
Luna - Moon Diver
Luna - ISOCHRON sample return
Luna - Luna Volatile Orbiter ?
Luna - NanoSWARM

Mars - COMPASS climate orbiter
Mars - Ice Breaker polar lander

Neptune, Tritan - Trident

Venus - Veritas mapping orbiter
Venus - DaVinci+ atmospheric probe
Venus - HOVER hyperspectrol observer
Venus - Thalassa orbiter explore ocean loss ?

Posted by: stevesliva Apr 2 2020, 02:03 AM

QUOTE (atomoid @ Feb 12 2020, 08:09 PM)

WFIRST apparently cannibalized to bolster JWST...

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7628

QUOTE

The FY2020 Consolidated Appropriations Act funds the WFIRST program through September 2020. The FY2021 budget request proposes to terminate funding for the WFIRST mission and focus on the completion of the James Webb Space Telescope, now planned for launch in March 2021. The Administration is not ready to proceed with another multi-billion-dollar telescope until Webb has been successfully launched and deployed.

The rest of the article focuses on WFIRST's capabilities.