The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced on October 27 that its annual income was three times the size of the annual budget. In a recently published report, NASA reviewed the fiscal year 2021, in which the federal budget amounted to USD 23.3 billion.
According to the report, NASA’s income over the past year amounted to more than USD 71.2 billion. Moreover, the agency’s work has provided about 340 thousand jobs in all 50 states and Washington, DC. “We are trying to point out how poignant and important the agency’s economic influence is for the country,” said NASA administrator Bill Nelson.
NASA’s work in the aerospace industry includes everything from operational programs such as the International Space Station and commercial crews to a plan to return astronauts to the Moon, known as Artemis.
Invaluable contribution to the US economy
Bill Nelson also argues that the economic impact report actually understates the agency’s value to the U.S. economy. He cited examples such as pharmaceutical research on the space station, calculating soil moisture for agriculture, or using satellites to identify trees that could be sick and cause a forest fire.
“Unfortunately, many people will not understand this and will not take it properly,” Nelson said.
In several areas over the past decade, NASA has moved from owning and operating space technology to buying technology as services for the private sector. Examples include private SpaceX astronaut flights to the ISS or the low-cost CAPSTONE lunar mission. Although macroeconomic changes in the United States are seen as the main reason for the cooling of the investment line in space companies, NASA continues to increase revenues in billions.
“Space is not just a space, but also an area of economic investment,” Nelson said.
High risks
However, Nelson noted that the space sector remains “extremely risky.” As an example, he cited Masten Space, a partner company that won a NASA contract to deliver cargo to the Moon – the company had already filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. Its assets were acquired by another American space company, Astrobotic, focused on the Moon.
Earlier we reported on how the scientific director of the Voyager mission retired.
According to CNBC
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