Mr. President, I'm Bill Nye, CEO of the
Planetary Society, the world's largest
non-governmental space interest
organization. We're a non-partisan
organization funded by over 50,000
members--people around the world with
different political beliefs--who are
united in their support for space
science and exploration. Ever since it
was created,
NASA has had bipartisan support. You have
the opportunity to provide clear
direction to our nation's space program.
The advances and discoveries made on
your watch could be historic. As you
consider NASA's direction and its new
leadership team, The Planetary Society's
Board of Directors and I would like to
offer five recommendations for the
United States space program during your
tenure. Number one: keep the planet Mars
as the goal for human space exploration.
We strongly recommend against starting
over.
Let's maintain all of the existing
programs, robotic missions, crew capsules,
and rocket programs already in
development.
Let's keep this momentum going and get
humans to Mars in our lifetimes.
Number two: orbit Mars first. We convened a
workshop with over 70 of the world's
spaceflight experts to study an
affordable, executable set of space
missions that would put humans in orbit
around Mars in the year 2033.
Then two or more years later, we
would land the first humans there.
This is the same way we explored the Moon.
Apollo 8 orbited the Moon before Apollo
11 landed there. An independent
evaluation found this plan for Mars to
be technically feasible and affordable,
needing only small budget increases to
match inflation. Major aerospace
industries and other NASA centers have
studied similar plans for this
sustainable, focused approach. We could
get humans to Mars in just 15 years if
we commit now and for the long-term.
Number three: strengthen NASA
science. NASA has four science divisions
that explore the deep cosmos, our solar system,
the Sun and our home planet Earth. NASA
engineers and technicians build and
launch robotic spacecraft that support
tens of thousands of American jobs in
engineering, precision manufacturing and
science. I urge you to embrace the full
potential of all of NASA's science
programs so they can continue to lead the
world in science, technology and
exploration. Number four: embrace
commercial space. The ambitions and
capabilities of private space companies
have grown substantially in the past
decade.
Let's unleash private investment in
low-Earth orbit and find ways to
encourage this next generation of
entrepreneurs and inventors to blaze a
trail to Mars and beyond. There's a new
movement for space happening today.
Let's keep it going.
Number five: Five-over-five. Here's what I'm talking about:
our citizens expect so much of
NASA. The organization is often asked to do
a lot with not quite enough. We recommend
that you propose a five-percent boost to
NASA's budget every year for the next 5
years. Five-over-five. These small increases
would give NASA the resources necessary
to achieve its goals. This is money that
gets spent on Earth, in the United States,
and supports tens of thousands of jobs
across the country. Without these budget
increases, NASA won't have the ability to
send humans anywhere--not to the moon, not
to Mars, not anywhere. In Congress, there
is bipartisan support for increasing
NASA's budget. Your administration has
the opportunity to lead by taking this
critical first step.
Mr. President, I would be pleased to
discuss these recommendations with you,
the Vice President or members of your
staff in person. Since we were founded in
1980, The Planetary Society
has worked with both parties
to advance space science and
exploration. For decades, our members have
supported the mission to Pluto that
became New Horizons. We support the
missions to Mars, including Sojourner,
Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity and the
upcoming Mars 2020 Rover. We recently
helped NASA begin work on a new mission,
the Europa Clipper, to explore the ocean
moon of Jupiter that may harbor life. We
support the space telescopes Kepler,
Spitzer, Hubble and Webb. Next time you
visit the halls of Congress, take pride
in the space images that hang on office
walls. Space brings out the best in us.
There are two questions deep within each
of us: where did we come from and are we
alone in the universe? To answer these
questions, we have to explore space.
Historic discoveries await us. With your
leadership we may find life elsewhere in
the cosmos, get humans on the Martian
surface and witness the opening of a new
marketplace in space.
Thank you for considering our
recommendations. The Planetary Society
urges you to embrace NASA's potential
and make investments that will advance
space science and exploration for all humankind.
Thank you.
