NASA Charter Violations Threaten American Science and Security. Save us.

I’m raising deep alarm and urgency regarding the recent announcement by the Acting NASA Administrator to terminate all science and education activities not directly tied to human spaceflight. This decision violates NASA’s founding charter, undermining the very principles upon which the agency was built: peaceful exploration, scientific advancement, and the dissemination of knowledge for the benefit of all mankind. This new directive not only defies those mandates, it threatens to destroy decades of progress and global leadership in science and technology. The consequences will be catastrophic. Here are five devastating outcomes Americans will face: 1. Loss of Climate Monitoring Capabilities NASA’s Earth science missions track climate change, disasters, and water resources. Cutting them blinds us to environmental threats and weakens emergency response. 2. Increased Vulnerability to Space Weather Events Reducing heliophysics research exposes our power grid to solar storms, risking blackouts, fires, and trillions in economic damage. 3. Collapse of STEM Education and Outreach Eliminating NASA’s education budget will gut STEM programs, limiting opportunities for students and worsening the national brain drain. 4. Abandonment of Groundbreaking Missions Projects like the Roman Telescope and Habitable Worlds Observatory could be canceled, wasting billions and halting the search for life beyond Earth. 5. Violation of International Treaties and Peaceful Space Use Redirecting funds to lunar nuclear power and territorial claims risks breaching the Outer Space Treaty and militarizing space. This is not just a budget issue. It’s a moral and strategic crisis. I urge you to take immediate legislative action to restore NASA’s science funding, enforce its charter, and protect the future of American innovation and global leadership.